
55 

Difficult 
Bible 

Questions 

Answered 



THE CHRISTIAN HERALD 
BIBLE HOUSE.NEWTORKD 




Class 

Book 

Cop}TightN°_ 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



555 

Difficult 

Bible Questions 

Answered 



A Book 

of Reference 

for All 

Denominations 










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Copyright, 1914 

BY 

THE CHRISTIAN HERALD 
NEW YORK 



DEC 19 1914 








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FOREWORD 



THIS volume is the outcome of Biblical research 
covering a period of almost a quarter of a cen- 
tury, and represents the combined labors of care- 
ful and painstaking scholars, pastors, professors and 
theologians of all denominations. Their investigations 
have been conducted along the lines followed by the 
ablest orthodox expositors of the present day. To the 
average student and Bible reader, it will be found a 
valuable means of reference, and a source of constant 
edification, enlightenment and education. 

The contributors to the book have not merely 
traveled along the ordinary highways of Biblical litera- 
ture; they have found in rarely trodden footpaths and 
byways much that is valuable and known only to the 
few. They .have carefully weighed and tested their 
authorities and, with infinite labor, have here set down 
only that which has appealed to them as worthy of 
preservation and likely to be of service to earnest Bible 
students everywhere. It is humbly hoped that the 
book will be found worthy of a place on the student's 
table as a companion to the Bible, since it serves to 
shed the light of the best modern interpretation upon 
a very large number of obscure passages, many of 
which are liable to be misunderstood by the ordinary 
reader. It is supplementary to the Sacred Book in 
the sense that it presents, from trustworthy sources, 
more or less difficult of access, much that is in the 
nature of corroborative evidence. It also gives, in 



~> 



Foreword 

many instances, rendering's of difficult passages with 
a closer and truer relation to the original text. 

In the domain of practical everyday Christian liv- 
ing, and particularly in dealing with problems that are 
constantly arising for consideration, it will be found 
especially helpful. Many of the questions with which 
it deals are such as are familiar to the average man 
or woman, and they will find in it material aid toward 
their solution. In the pages of The Christian Herald 
these questions, and others of a similar character, 
dealing with matters of faith, personal conduct and 
Christian living, have been frequently discussed. 

In view of the steadily growing interest in all forms 
of Bible study, and with a sincere desire to be of 
service to the multitudes who yearn to know more of 
God's Word, and to place at their disposal a means of 
real help which we are led to hope will be welcomed 
and appreciated, the present volume is respectfully 
submitted by the compiler. 

A. T. S. 



Difficult Bible Questions 



FACTS ABOUT THE BIBLE 



1. Who Wrote the Various Books in the Bible? 

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy 
— Moses (scholarly opinions differ here, but so far no 
thoroughly convincing arguments have been advanced 
to disprove the Mosaic authorship of large portions of 
these books) ; Joshua — Joshua (also ascribed to 
Phineas, Eleazar, Samuel and Jeremiah) ; Judges — 
ascribed by Jewish tradition to Samuel; Ruth — un- 
known; I and II Samuel — unknown (probably the 
work of Samuel, Nathan and others) ; I and II Kings 
— unknown; I and II Chronicles — probably Ezra; 
Ezra — probably Ezra ; Nehemiah — Nehemiah ; Esther 
— probably Mordecai, or Ezra; Job — uncertain (has 
been attributed to Moses, or Job) ; the Psalms — David, 
Moses, and others; Proverbs — Solomon and others; 
Ecclesiastes — formerly ascribed to Solomon, now 
thought by many to belong to a later period ; Song of 
Solomon — Solomon ; Isaiah — Isaiah ; Jeremiah — Jere- 
miah; Lamentations — Jeremiah; the remaining books 
of the Old Testament were written by the prophets 
whose names they bear, with the probable exception 



2 Difficult Bible Questions 

of Jonah ; Matthew — Matthew ; Mark — Mark ; Luke — 
Luke; John — John; Acts — Luke; Romans to Phile- 
mon — Paul; Hebrews — unknown (has been ascribed 
to Paul, Luke, Apollos, Barnabas) ; James — James ; 
I and II Peter— Peter; I, II and III John — John; 
Revelation— John. 

2. Inspiration of the Bible. 

The question is asked, "How can I know that the 
Bible is inspired?" Even in this late day, when the 
number of Christians has multiplied from a mere hand- 
ful to four hundred and seventy millions, or fully one- 
fourth of the entire population of the globe, there are 
people who doubt the inspiration of the Bible. At 
different times during the last twenty centuries assaults 
have been made against the Sacred Book, which Glad- 
stone termed the "Impregnable Rock of Holy Scrip- 
ture," but without avail. It has a firmer hold on the 
hearts of men than in any previous age. Mr. Moody, 
the greatest of American evangelists, was once asked 
whether he regarded the Bible as inspired, and his 
answer was brief and to the point : "I know the Bible 
is inspired," he said, "because it inspires me !" There 
are countless thousands who will echo this answer and 
whose lives have been transformed by the same in- 
spiration. Not only the great religious scholars, but 
the masters of secular literature regard the Bible as 
unapproachable in its high standard of expression, its 
magnificent imagery, the transcendent nobility of its 
rhetoric, the authority with which it appeals to the 
hearts of men, the universality of its application and 
the power it exercises over the souls of men. It bears 
within itself the evidence of inspiration, and wherever 



Bible — Facts About the Bible 3 

it is known and read and its precepts followed, its in- 
fluence is uplifting and inspiring. The theory of in- 
spiration does not exclude, but rather implies, human 
agency, however. "Holy men of God spake as they 
were moved by the Holy Spirit." (II Peter 1:21). 

3. What Is Higher Criticism? 

The ordinary study or criticism is directed to find- 
ing out the meaning of the passages, their correct 
translation and their significance and bearing on doc- 
trines. The higher critics go above and back of all 
that, applying to the books of the Bible the same 
tests and methods of examination as are applied to 
other ancient books. They try to find out who were 
really the authors of the books and when they were 
written and whether any changes have been made in 
them since they were written. This latter question they 
try to solve by a close examination of the text. When 
they find, for example, such an expression as "There 
was no king in Israel in those days" (Judges 17:6), 
they conclude that that sentence was inserted as ex- 
planatory, by some one w T ho edited the book after the 
contemporaneous historian had finished it. Or to take 
an example of a different kind : There is a statement 
in Psalm 51:16 that God desires not sacrifice, while 
in the nineteenth verse it is said that he will be pleased 
with sacrifice. The explanation the higher critics give 
is that probably the latter verse was added later, by 
some priest who did not wish the people to cease bring- 
ing sacrifices. The best scholars of the present day 
believe that many of the conclusions reached by the 
higher critics are erroneous, and that others are mere 
guesses for which there is not sufficient evidence. 



4-5 Difficult Bible Questions 

4* What Are the Proofs of Bible Authenticity? 

"Can we prove the authenticity of the Bible by out- 
side evidence ?" is a frequent question. The authenticity 
of the Bible is being proved by the old records on 
monuments, by tablets recently deciphered, and by 
discoveries in Bible lands. That is if by authenticity 
you mean its historical truth. As to inspiration, the 
best evidence is its effects. The man who loves the 
Bible and tries to conduct his life according to its 
precepts is a better man for the effort. The Bible- 
reading nation advances in the best line of civilization, 
caring for its poor and afflicted, and becoming in all 
ways better. Another evidence of its being inspired is 
the revelation it gives a man of himself, holding a 
mirror to his gaze by which he recognizes himself. 
Another evidence is its survival. No book was ever 
more violently attacked, no book was ever more mis- 
used, yet it has outlived the attacks of foes and the 
faults of friends and is read today more widely than 
ever. These are a few of the reasons for believing it 
came from God. 

5. Can We Find Any Reference to Christ in Con- 
temporaneous Secular Writers ? 

Yes. There are references to Christ in connection 
with Christians, by several historians. Tacitus, who 
was praetor under Domitian in A. D. 88, only fifty- 
eight years after the Crucifixion, refers to Christ 
(Annal XV :44) . Pliny the younger, who was tri- 
bune in Syria about the same time, also refers to him 
(Epistle X:97). There are also references in Lucian, 
who lived about the middle of the second century. 
He states explicitly the fact of Christ having been 



Bible — Facts About the Bible 6 

crucified. Suetonius and Eusebius also refer to Christ. 
Besides these evidences, there was the persecution 
of the Christians under Nero, which is recorded by all 
historians. Nero died A. D. 68, only thirty-eight years 
after the Crucifixion. It is therefore clear that there 
were many Christians before that time. How could 
the sect have come into existence without a founder? 
If you saw an oak growing in a place where there was 
no tree fifty years before, you would suspect that 
some one had planted an acorn there, and if four men 
told you how, when and by whom it was planted, you 
would be prepared to believe them. So there is good 
reason for believing the Gospel narratives, when you 
read in secular history of the existence of the Christian 
Church fifty years after the Crucifixion. Their stories 
are a credible explanation of a well-established fact. 

6. Does the Bible Teach Science? 

It is not a scientific textbook, nor was it written to 
teach science, but religion. The discrepancies between 
the story of creation as given in the Bible and that 
given by the scientists are very much such as we should 
find in two descriptions of a great battle, if one of them 
was written by a clergyman who knew nothing of mili- 
tary tactics, and the other by a military expert who 
knew nothing of religion. The important fact for us — 
the fact that is of more momentous interest than all 
the discoveries of science — is that God made the uni- 
verse. For this knowledge we are not indebted to 
science, which has not yet attained it, but we do get 
it from the Bible. A person who wants to know the 
latest discoveries of science as to geology and as- 
tronomy, should study the recent books of science; 



7 Difficult Bible Questions 

but if he wants to know the way to God and eternal 
happiness, he should go to the Bible. Each has its 
own sphere. 

7. Why Should We Believe the Scriptures? 

Some people answer this query by saying that the 
reason is found in the fact that the Bible is the only 
book handed down to us through the ages. That is 
not the best answer. Some ancient writings, like the 
Vedas, for instance, are almost as ancient as the Bible. 
And many tablets and monuments are in existence 
containing words written as long ago as the writings 
of the Scriptures. There are many powerful argu- 
ments for the Bible, but the greatest is that every 
person who will really study it finds that it does tell 
the truth about the human soul. When a man reads 
in an arithmetic that two and two make four, he does 
not stop to ask himself why he should believe the 
arithmetic. He knows instinctively and intuitively 
that the arithmetic is telling him the truth. So when 
an honest man studies the Bible he finds it full of 
truths about himself. The Bible tells him he is a 
sinner, and he knows that is true. The Bible tells 
him about God, and he finds in his heart a deep con- 
viction that just such a God exists. The Bible offers 
forgiveness, and the man knows he needs it. Step by 
step, and point by point, the Bible shows the man what 
he is and what he needs and points the way to find- 
ing the fulfillment of his needs and desires. People 
find in the Bible help for bearing their trials, power 
to resist temptation, assurance of immortality and 
friendship with God. A man who never saw the 
Bible before, when he reads of God in it, realizes that 



Bible— Facts About the Bible 7 

he always needed and longed for God, but did not 
know how to find him till the Bible showed him the 
way. Particularly does it show him how to find God 
in Christ. That, after all, is the supreme mission of 
the Bible — to lead men to Christ. But, again, taking 
the Bible as literature, we find that it hangs together, 
that it bears within itself the evidence that it is true. 
Start with the writings of Paul. Here is a level- 
headed, highly educated, practical man who has left 
to the world's literature certain letters to groups of 
friends. These letters tell about Paul's personal knowl- 
edge of Christ, his personal friendship for him, his 
personal endeavors to forward the work of Christ 
which he had formerly antagonized until Christ him- 
self appeared to him and set him right. Paul tells of 
becoming acquainted later with men who had known 
Christ in the flesh — Peter, James, John and others. We 
find that these men also wrote about Jesus, John writ- 
ing three letters and a narrative of his life; Peter 
writing two letters, and apparently giving much of 
the information to his nephew Mark, who wrote an- 
other version of the life of Jesus. Luke, another 
friend of Paul, and probably also a personal friend of 
Jesus, wrote another version of his life and wrote the 
history of what his apostles did through his power 
after he had risen from the dead and gone back to the 
heavenly world. These were all good, honest, intelli- 
gent men. We may believe what they wrote about 
Christ and his salvation, just as we believe what Caesar 
wrote about the Gallic Wars. Further, we find that 
Christ came from a people whose history is recorded 
in the books of the Bible and whose prophets uttered 
messages from God. Peter connects the messages of 



8-9 Difficult Bible Questions 

the prophets with those of himself and the other 
•apostles in II Peter 3:2: "That ye may be mindful 
of the words which were spoken before by the holy 
prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles 
of our Lord and Saviour." The Bible holds together 
about the person of Christ as the great divine-human 
document which reveals him to the world. 

8. Has Bible History Been Substantiated ? 

Yes, to a very notable extent by investigations in 
Bible lands. Excavations of ancient Babylonian tablets 
have corroborated the Biblical story of the Flood. 
The discovery of Assyrian inscriptions has proved the 
identity of Sargon, one of the greatest of the kings 
of that nation (see Isa. 20:1-4) ; identification of the 
site of Nineveh and of the Tower of Babel or "Birs 
Nimrud." Many facts concerning kings, nations, cities 
and events have been brought to light in these ancient 
records of brick, stone or papyrus, confirming Scrip- 
ture history. 

9. Were the Gospels Written by the Men Whose 

Names They Bear? 

Presumption based on internal evidence is in favor 
of that theory. There has been no serious question 
as to the authorship of Matthew. Mark is supposed 
to have derived his knowledge of the events he 
recorded from Peter. Our knowledge of Peter's char- 
acter leads us to believe that if he undertook to write 
a Gospel it would be such an one as the Gospel accord- 
ing to Mark. Such an expression as that in Mark 
14:72, "When he thought thereon he wept," implies 
an intimate knowledge of him such as would be writ- 



Bible— Facts About the Bible 10 

ten by Peter himself, or by a close associate. The 
introduction to Luke's Gospel shows that many Gospels 
were in existence when Luke wrote, and as he knew of 
them, he may have availed himself of the material 
they contained. His remark about writing "in order" 
suggests compilation. The authorship of the fourth 
Gospel has been hotly disputed, chiefly because some 
critics held that the writer of Revelation could not have 
written the elegant and cultured Greek of the Gospel. 
The majority of the commentators now, however, are 
in favor of the belief that John wrote it. 

10. When Were the Gospels Written? 

The genuineness of the four Gospels rests upon 
better authority than that of any other ancient writ- 
ings. It is the general conclusion of the most eminent 
scholars that all four were written during the latter 
half of the first century. Before the end of the second 
century they were in general use and acceptance as 
one collection. They are mentioned by Tertullian, in 
a book written about A. D. 208, as being the work of 
two apostles and two disciples of apostles. Marcion 
also mentions their apostolic origin. Origen (who 
lived A. D. 185-253) refers to them as "the four ele- 
ments of the church's faith." Theophilus, Bishop of 
Antioch (A. D. 168), also mentions the Gospels in his 
writings, and Jerome tells us that Theophilus arranged 
the four into one work. Tatian (who died about A. D. 
170) compiled a Harmony of the Gospels. Justin 
Martyr (A. D. 99-165) gives many quotations from 
the Gospels. Many other witnesses might be cited to 
the same purpose. None of the original manuscripts 
are now in existence. 



11 Difficult Bible Questions 

11. Curiosities of the Scriptures. 

In the Bible the word "Lord" is found 1,853 times. 
The word "Jehovah" 6,855 times. 

The word "Reverend" but once, and that in the 9th 
verse of Psalm ill. 

The 8th verse of the 97th Psalm is the middle verse 
of the Bible. 

The 9th verse of the 8th chapter of Esther is the 
longest. 

The 35th verse of the nth chapter of St. John is 
the shortest. 

In the 107th Psalm four verses are alike: The 
8th, 15th, 2 1 st and 31st. 

Ezra 7:21 contains all the letters of the alphabet 
except J. 

Each verse of the 136th Psalm ends alike. 

No names or words of more than six syllables are 
found in the Bible. 

The 37th chapter of Isaiah and 19th chapter of II 
Kings are alike. 

The word "girl" occurs but once in the Bible, and 
that in the 3d verse of the 3d chapter of Joel. 

There are found in both books of the Bible 3,538,- 
483 letters, 773,693 words, 31,373 verses, 1,189 chap- 
ters and 66 books. 

The 26th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles is the 
finest chapter to read. 

The most beautiful chapter is the 23d Psalm. 

The four most inspiring promises are John 14:2-6, 
37 ; Matthew 1 1 :28 ; Psalm 37 14. 

The 1st verse of the 50th chapter of Isaiah is the 
one for the new convert. 



Bible— Facts About the Bible 12 

All who flatter themselves with vain boasting should 
read the 6th chapter of Matthew. 

All humanity should learn the 6th chapter of St. 
Luke from the 20th verse to its ending. 

12. Symbols of Christ and Christianity 

"What symbols are used for both Christ and his 
people ?" is a frequent question. There are six symbols 
used for both Christ and his people. 

i. A Branch. For Christ, in Is. 11:1-4, "A 
branch out of his roots shall bear fruit," and "with 
the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked;" in 
Zech. 6:12, 13, Heb. 3 :i-4 2 Is. 4:2, Zech. 3 :8, Jer. 23 15, 
33:15, 16. For his People, John 15:5, "Ye are the 
branches;" Is. 60:21, "The people also shall be all 
righteous, the branch of my planting;" also, Rom. 
11 :i6, Ps. 80:11, 15. 

2. Light. For Christ, In John 8 :i2, Jesus spake, 
"I am the light of the world ;" also, in John 9 15, Luke 
2 :32, and I John 1 :5, "God is light." For his People. 
Phil. 2:15, "Among whom ye are seen as lights in the 
world," Matt. 5:14, Eph. 5:8, Acts 13:47, Is. 42:6, 
Prov. 4:18. 

3. A Stone. For Christ in I Pet. 2:4, 6, 7, 8, 
"A living stone," "A chief corner-stone," "the stone 
which the builders rejected," "a stone of stumbling;" 
also, Ps. 118:22, Eph. 2:20, Matt. 21:42. For his 
People. I Pet. 2 :5, "Ye also as living stones are built 
up a spiritual house;" also, Eph. 2:21, 22. 

4. A Temple. Used for Christ in Rev. 21 :22, 
"And I saw no temple therein for the Lord God the 
Almighty and the Lamb are the temple thereof ;" also, 
John 2 rip, 21. For his People. I Cor. 3 :i6, 17, "For 



13 Difficult Bible Questions 

the temple of God is holy which temple ye are," and 
I Cor. 6:19, II Cor. 6:16. 

5. A Sun. For Christ. Ps. 84:11, "For the Lord 
God is a sun and shield;" also, Mai. 4:2, Rev. 21 123, 
22:5. For his People. Judges 5:31, "Let them that 
love thee be as the sun;" also, Matt. 13 143. 

6. A Star. For Christ. Rev. 22:16, "I am the 
bright and morning star," II Pet. 1 :I9, "Until the day 
dawn and the day-star arise in your hearts;" also, 
Num. 24 \iy. For his People. Dan. 12 :i-3, "And they 
that be wise shall shine," "and they that turn many to 
righteousness as the stars for ever and ever." 

13. What Are the Sacred or § Symbolical Num- 
bers? 

There are certain numbers employed in Scripture 
that are known as sacred or symbolical numbers. 
Among these are seven (perfection), as the triune 
symbol of deity and the four quarters of the earth; 
forty, a "round number," signifying duration, distance, 
quantity; ten (completeness) ; five, as used in offerings 
etc. ; four, related to the quarters of the globe, the 
shape of the holy of holies in the temple, etc.; three, 
symbol of supreme divinity; twelve, which derives its 
significance from the twelve tribes and which has been 
called the "square number," the "zodiacal number," 
the "apostolic number." 12x12 means, symbolically, 
fixity and completeness, and taken a thousand-fold, it 
gives the grand multiple of 144,000 (otherwise a 
countless multitude), one thousand symbolizing the 
world wholly pervaded by the divine — a world re- 
deemed ! 



Bible— Facts About the Bible 14-15 

14. Why Is Seven Used More than Any Other 

Number? 

The symbolism of "seven" should be traced back to 
the symbolism of its component elements, "three" and 
"four," which represent divinity and humanity. Hence, 
"seven" represents the union between God and man. 
Among the Persians, the Greeks, the ancient Indians, 
the Romans, and all nations where seven days in the 
week were recognized, the influence of the number 
seven prevailed. It was called by Cicero "the knot 
and cement of all things," because in "seven" the 
spiritual and natural world were comprehended in one 
idea. Some writers claim that the Hebrews borrowed 
it from their heathen neighbors. The Sabbath, being 
the seventh day, suggested seven as the appointment 
for all sacred periods. The seventh month was ushered 
in by the Feast of Trumpets; seven weeks was the 
interval between the Passover and the Pentecost, and 
so on, recognizing seven as the symbol of all con- 
nected with the Divinity. 

15. What Significance Attaches to the Frequent 

Use of Forty? 

It is not merely an arbitrary period or a "round 
number," but is chosen to convey the sense of fullness. 
Some of its prominent Scriptural uses are : Moses was 
forty days on the mount (Ex. 24:18, etc.); Elijah, 
strengthened by angel food, fasted for forty days (I 
Kings 19 :8) ; the rain of the flood fell for forty days 
(Gen. 7 :i2) ; Noah opened the window of the ark after 
forty days (Gen. 8:6) ; the spies spent forty days in 
searching Canaan (Num. 13:25) ; Moses twice fasted 



16-17 Difficult Bible Questions 

and prayed for forty days (Deu. 9:18-25); Ezekiel 
bore the iniquities of Jucfah forty days (Eze. 4:6); 
Nineveh was allowed forty days to repent (Jonah 3 14) ; 
the Israelites wandered forty years in the wilderness 
(Num. 34:33); Goliath defied Saul's army for forty 
days (I Sam. 17:16); forty days was the period of 
embalming (Gen. 50:3); the Lord fasted for forty 
days (Matt. 4:2, etc.) ; the arisen Lord was seen for 
forty days (Acts 1:3); the Jews were forbidden to 
inflict more than forty stripes (Deu. 25 13). It is note- 
worthy that Jerusalem was destroyed forty years after 
Christ's ascension, and tradition says Jesus was forty 
hours in the tomb. Lent lasts for forty days, as does 
also quarantine. St. Swithin betokens forty days' rain, 
while many ancient laws concerning physicians, 
knights, husbands, wives, widows, sanctuary privileges, 
fines, etc., all cluster about this number. 

16. Who Compiled the Old Testament? 

It is claimed that the books of the Old Testament 
were collected and arranged under the supervision 
of Ezra, though modern scholarship disputes the claim. 
The epistles of Paul to the various churches were col- 
lected and incorporated with the other epistles and 
the Gospels and Revelation into one book during the 
first half of the second century, and as we learn from 
Eusebius, were in general use soon after the year 
300 A. D. 

1 7. What Are the Omitted Books of the Bible ? 

The excluded books are known as "Apocrypha," 
and are as follows : I Esdras, II Esdras, Tobit, Judith, 
several chapters of Esther which are found neither 

14 



Bible— Facts About the Bible 18 

in the Hebrew nor the Chaldee, The Wisdom of Solo- 
mon, The Wisdom of Jesus, son of Sirach, or Ec- 
clesiasticus, Baruch, The Song of the Three Holy Chil- 
dren, The History of Susanna, The History of the 
Destruction of Bel and the Dragon, The Prayer of 
Manasseh, I Maccabees, II Maccabees. They were 
excluded by the early Christian Church on the ground 
that they were of doubtful authority and not tending 
to spiritual edification. This decision has never been 
reversed, although in some periods of the Church's 
history a number of the apocryphal writings were pub- 
lished in smaller type after the regular books in the 
Bible. At one time the volume of apocryphal writings 
was even larger than the genuine, but very many of 
them, being rejected, quickly perished. 

18. What Are the Famous Songs of the Bible? 

The great songs of the Old Testament, besides the 
Psalms and certain metrical passages in Job, are: 
Lamech's Sword Song, Gen. 4:23, 24; Noah's Song, 
Gen. 9:25-27; Moses' and Miriam's Song, Ex. 15 :i- 

19, 21 ; War Songs, etc., Num. 21 114, 15, 17, 18, 27-30; 
Moses' Prophetic Song, Deut. 32:1-43; Song of De- 
borah and Barak, Judg. 5 :2-2i ; Samson's Riddle Song, 
Judg. 15:16; Hannah's Magnificat, I Sam. 2:1-10; 
David's Song of the Bow, II Sam. 1:19-27; David's 
Song over Abner, II Sam. 3 :33, 34 ; David's Thanks- 
giving, I Chron. 16:8-36; Hezekiah's Song, Isa. 38:10- 
20; Jonah's Prayer Song, Jonah 2:2-9; Habakkuk's 
Prayer Song, Hab. 3 :2-i9; and the four original songs 
in the New Testament: Luke 1 .'46-55; Luke 1 :68-8o; 
Luke 2 :i4 ; Luke 2 :20-33« 



19 Difficult Bible Questions 

19. Who Was the Author of Revelation? 

"Was the Book of Revelation written by the same 
John who wrote the Gospel and the Epistle ?" This 
question has been long disputed by scholars. Dionysius, 
in A. D. 240, was one of the earliest to express a doubt. 
It was attributed to John Mark, the companion of Paul 
and Barnabas and the author of the Gospel of Mark ; 
to John the Presbyter, to Cerinthus, and others. The 
majority of German scholars agree with Luther in 
denying that Revelation was written by the apostle. 
On the other hand, there is internal evidence of John's 
authorship. His description of himself is in the man- 
ner of John. The apostle was the only man of prom- 
inence of that name who was banished to Patmos. 
The addresses to the seven churches of Asia show a 
knowledge of them consistent with the fact that the 
apostle was their overseer. On the whole, therefore, 
there seems good reason to believe that it was written 
by the Apostle John. The differences in the style of 
the Gospel and the Revelation, which are very marked, 
doubtless first gave rise to the doubt of the apostolic 
authorship. These are accounted for by the age of the 
author and by his perturbation of mind under the ex- 
citement of the visions. 



20 



OLD TESTAMENT PERSONS 
AND THINGS 



20. What Were the Meaning and Result of 
Abraham's Sacrifice ? 

The story of Abraham will ever be an important 
one, and particularly that part of it dealing with the 
memorable doings at the place .he named "Jehovah- 
jireh," where, as related in Genesis 22, he showed his 
wonderful obedience to God. Whatever may be con- 
jectured to the contrary, the record in Genesis is clear 
and unmistakable. It was a test of Abraham's faith 
in God. Some critics want to know why, if God is 
all knowing, he should have said to Abraham: "For 
now I know that thou fearest God" (Gen. 22:12). 
The problem of foreknowledge is an extremely diffi- 
cult one, and discussion about it is usually fruitless. 
God in this case speaks of the test of Abraham as 
though it had been an experiment. He proved him 
and found him firm in faith and perfect in obedience. 
It was in obedience to the Lord's command that he 
stood ready to offer up his son Isaac, and not be- 
cause he himself had chosen such a sacrifice, in order 
to be like his idolatrous neighbors, who offered up 
their children to Moloch. Genesis 22 ,2 dismisses this 
latter suggestion altogether. 

The immediate effect of Abraham's successful test 
was the great blessing which God bestowed on him 
(verse 16), which, together with God's covenant, made 



21 Difficult Bible Questions 

Abraham the most important Biblical character and 
his name better known than that of any other human 
being on earth. All the promises to Abraham have 
been fulfilled, except the return of his descendants 
to the promised land. His seed is past all reckoning. 
Not only have all the Jews been his offspring, but 
Christians as well are in a sense his spiritual children. 
Their faith in Christ brings them into his family and 
makes them heirs of the promises made to him. The 
land of Canaan was promised to his seed forever. 
Since they are not in possession of it now we must 
believe they will return, as many other prophecies also 
declare. The promise was, however, not made to 
Abraham alone, but to him and his seed, which includes 
Christ — to the literal Israel and also to the spiritual 
Israel. The complete fulfillment of the covenant 
awaited the coming of Christ, "the seed," concerning 
whom it was made. See Galatians 3 :i6. 

21. Did Abraham See God in One of the Three 
Men Who Visited Him? 

There is doubtless difficulty in reconciling the 
passage in Genesis 18 with the statement in John 1 :i8, 
that "No man hath seen God at any time." Authorities 
regarded the Genesis passage as relating to one of the 
"theophanies" of the Old Testament; that is, a real 
appearance of God to man. It is believed, however, 
that these appearances were of Christ the Son, rather 
than God the Father. The New Testament teaches 
that Christ existed co-eternally with the Father, and 
it is not inconceivable that he would at times take the 
appearance of humanity when he wished especially to 
make himself known to men. This explanation rec- 



Old Testament Subjects 22 

onciles all these occurrences with the statement of 
John that no one has seen God; that is, God the 
Father. Christ is the personal manifestation of God 
to man. 

22. How Are We to Interpret the Miracle at 
Ajalon? 

The passage in Joshua, ioth chapter, describing the 
miracle of the sun and moon at the time of the battle 
in the vale of Ajalon, has been much discussed. Some 
commentators hold that it is a passage in which the 
inspired historian departs from his narrative to in- 
troduce a highly poetic quotation, in other words, a 
poetical figure of speech, not to be interpreted literal- 
ly — as though one might say that "God and all nature 
fought on the side of Joshua." Again, the reference 
to the poetical book of Jasher as the source of this 
passage lends color to this explanation (see verse 13). 
Others prefer the literal view, regarding it as a miracle 
in which the hours when sun and moon were both 
visible (the sun on the heights of Gibeon at noon and 
the moon in the valley) were extended into a whole 
day, or twelve hours of light (see Macdonald's Priri- 
cipia and the Bible), the continued radiance of both 
orbs lighting the battleground. Still another inter- 
pretation is that the sun and moon were heavily ob- 
scured by storm clouds (see verse 11), and that 
Joshua's prayer was that they should withhold their 
light and that the gloom or semi-darkness of the 
storm might last until the battle was fought, giving 
the Israelites the advantage of a surprise with smaller 
numbers, the strength of which the enemy could not 
properly estimate. 



23-24 Difficult Bible Questions 

23. Did Adam and Eve Actually Eat Fruit, or 

Is the Saying a Parable? 

The only source of information is the Bible narrative 
and it contains no intimation that it is to be under- 
stood otherwise than literally. Theologians who have 
preferred to regard the narrative as a parable or alle- 
gory have usually been led to do so by the suggestion 
that the eating of fruit which was "good for food/' 
and "pleasant to the eyes," and was moreover within 
reach, was an offense too venial to have been justly 
visited with a punishment so severe and far-reaching. 
The objection, however, is not well founded, because 
it ignores the main point involved. The gravity of 
the offense consisted, not in the act itself, but in the 
fact that Adam and Eve in committing it were con- 
sciously and wilfully violating God's explicit and 
emphatic command. They were punished for dis- 
obedience. Even if we should hold that it took some 
other form than the actual and literal eating of fruit, 
the principle is the same. There is no valid reason 
for rejecting the Bible narrative or putting any other 
construction on the words than is there implied. 

24. Was Adam a Red Man? 

Adam means "red" and so also does the word 
Edom, both having relation to the ruddiness of flesh 
and the color of the clayey soil. (See Gen. 2:7.) 
Some commentators hold that Adam, the first man, 
was probably of the complexion of the Arabs, or 
Edomites, ruddy though dark, while others take a 
different view. No definite theory can be formed on 
this subject. 



Old Testament Subjects 25-26 

25. What Language Did Adam and Eve Speak? 

There are many mundane things beyond the reach 
of present human knowledge and the site of Eden 
and the language of our first parents are among the 
number. Some philologists have ventured the con- 
jecture that the primeval language must have been a 
simple vocabulary whose formation is indicated in 
Gen. 2:19, and which was strictly limited to the nat- 
ural requirements of our first progenitors; in other 
words, signs and sounds apprehensible by the senses. 
All agree that speech, or the power of expressing 
emotions, or desires, was coeval with the creation 
of man. The earliest monuments and inscriptions yet 
discovered do not reach as far back into antiquity 
as the confusion of tongues at Babel (about B. C. 
2200), previous to which (Gen. 2:1), the Biblical 
record states that "the whole earth was of one lan- 
guage and one speech, " although probably there were 
many variations and dialects, each containing some 
element of the original tongue. Man's first utterances 
were probably what philologists term a "physical lan- 
guage," limited to the expression of simple needs and 
afterwards expanded to meet man's growing expe- 
rience with his own nature and the world around him. 

26. What Became of Aaron's Rod? 

It was preserved in the tabernacle and, according 
to Paul (see Heb. 9:4), it was kept in the Ark, beside 
the two tablets of stone and the pot of manna. There 
is no mention of any other receptacle. The statement 
in I Kings 8:9 implies that by Solomon's time these 
relics had disappeared. It is possible, however, for 
a different interpretation to be placed on Deut. 31 :26, 



27-32 Difficult Bible Questions 

which may mean that the rod was kept beside the Ark, 
and not within it. 

27. What Was the Name of Cain's Wife? 

The name of Cain's wife is nowhere mentioned in 
the Bible. Arab traditions are preserved in one of 
which she is called A sura, in another Save, but these 
are not seriously regarded by scholars. 

28. Who Was David's Mother? 

Her name is not given in Scripture. The reference 
to Abigail, one of the members of Jesse's family, in 
II Sam. ly :2$, is frequently misunderstood. The 
Nahash there mentioned is either another name for 
Jesse or it refers to Nahash, king of Ammon, 
one of whose wives afterward became the wife of 
Jesse, as stated in the chronicles of the Jewish 
Church. 

29. Who Named Eve? 

Adam bestowed upon his companion the name of 
"Eve" (Gen. 3:20). 

30. Egypt — Date of Great Famine in: 

Began approximately 1875 B. C. 

31. Egypt — When Did Joseph Come to? 

Believed to be about 1895 B.C. 

32. Ham: The First Negro. 

Ham, one of the sons of Noah, was the progenitor 
of the negro race (see Gen. 9:18-27). 



Old Testament Subjects 33-36 

33. Jacob — Date of His Journey to Egypt: 

About 1874 B. C. Date of his death, 1857 B. C. 

34. How Many Walls Had Jerusalem? 

There were three walls about Jerusalem. The first 
was built by David and Solomon; the second, enclos- 
ing one of the northern sections of the city, was built 
by Uzziah, Jotham and Manasseh, and restored by 
Nehemiah ; the third was built by Herod Agrippa, and 
was intended to enclose the hitherto unprotected 
suburbs which had grown out from the northern part 
of the city. According to Josephus, who is not al- 
ways thoroughly reliable, the circumference of the city, 
evidently including all the sections enclosed by the 
three walls he describes, was thirty-three stadia, a little 
less than four English miles. 

35. What Is the Origin of the Name "Jew"? 

The appellation "Jew" is derived from the patriarch 
Judah, and was originally applied to all members of 
that tribe and also to subjects of the separate kingdom 
of Judah, in contradistinction to the seceding ten tribes, 
who retained the name of Israelites. During the cap- 
tivity and ever since, the term "Jew" seems to have 
been applied indiscriminately to the whole race. 

36. Who Were the Kings of Judah in Succession ? 

The names of the kings of Judah in their canonical 
order are: Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, 
Jehoram, Ahaziah, Athaliah (queen), Joash, Amaziah, 
Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, 
Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah. 



37-40 Difficult Bible Questions 

37. What Was Manna? 

It is supposed that the manna of the Israelites was 
a saccharine exudation of a species of tamarisk, the 
sap of which was set flowing by an insect. Several 
trees yield manna, as the flowering ash of Sicily and 
the eucalyptus of Australia. In India a sweet exuda- 
tion comes from the bamboo, and a similar substance 
is obtained from the sugar-pine and common reed 
of our own country. 

38. What Is the Meaning of "Mizpah"? 

Mizpah, or Mizpeh, was the name of several 
localities in Old Testament history. The word means 
"a watch-tower/' and in literature the whole of the 
beautiful remark made by Laban to Jacob (Gen. 31 149) 
has been included in its meaning: "The Lord watch 
between me and thee when we are absent one from the 
other." 

39. Who Was Moses 5 Ethiopian Wife? 

Commentators hold that the Ethiopian (or Cushite) 
woman mentioned in Num. 12 as the wife of Moses, 
against whom Aaron and Miriam complained, was 
Zipporah. Their opposition is believed to have been 
caused by jealousy of her relatives and their influence. 

40. What Became of Moses' Rod? 

There is nothing to show what became of Moses' 
rod. Aaron's rod, however, is said (in Heb. 9:4) to 
have been preserved in the sacred Ark of the Jews 
along with the tables of the law and the pot of manna. 



Old Testament Subjects 41-44 

41. What Was the Name of Potiphar's Wife? 

Her name is not given in the Bible, although it has 
been preserved in tradition. The Koran gives her 
name as Zuleika, and certain Arab writers call her 
Rail. 

42. What Two Bible Chapters Are Alike? 

The two chapters in the Bible that are alike are 
II Kings 19 and Isa. 37. Both are regarded as the 
work of Isaiah, relating a series of events which in 
one book are placed in their proper .historical setting 
and in the other find their true place among the 
prophecies. 

43. Was Sarai a Relative of Abram? 

In Gen. 20:12 Abram speaks of Sarai as his half- 
sister, the daughter of the same father, but not the 
same mother. The common Jewish tradition referred 
to by Josephus {Antiquities 1, 6, 6) and also by 
Jerome, is that Sarai was identical with Iscah (see 
Gen. 11:29), daughter of Haran and sister of Lot, 
who is called Abraham's "brother." 

44. What Is the Meaning of "Selah"? 

The word "Selah," which occurs a number of times 
in the Psalms, was a musical or liturgical sign, whose 
meaning is unknown. Some regard it as a pause in 
the music, to mark a transition in the theme or com- 
position. It seems to have no grammatical connec- 
tion with the sentence after which it appears, and has 
therefore nothing to do with the meaning of the 
passage. It was a note to the singers of the psalm, 



45-47 Difficult Bible Questions 

or to those who were accompanying the singing with 
instruments. 

45. What Was the Fate of Amalek? 

The Amalekites were a wicked, oppressive, war-like 
and cruel people. They were powerful and influen- 
tial and possessed cities in the south of Canaan. (See 
I Sam. 15:18; Judg. 10:12; Num. 24:7.) They were 
the first to oppose Israel (Exo. 17:8) ; Saul overcame 
them (I Sam. 14:48); David invaded their land (I 
Sam. 30:1-2), and what was left of them was com- 
pletely destroyed during the reign of Hezekiah (I 
Chron. 4:41-43). 

46. Who Were Called "The Children of Lot"? 

The Ammonites were so called (Deu. 2:19). They 
were a cruel, covetous, proud, reproachful, vindictive, 
superstitious and idolatrous nation (see Amos 1:13; 
Zep. 2:10; Eze. 25:3, 6; Judg. 10:6; Jer. 27:3). 
Their chief city was Rabbah (II Sam. 12:26-27), 
where they were governed by hereditary kings (II 
Sam. 2:20-21). They had various encounters with 
Israel. With the Philistines they oppressed Israel for 
eighteen years (Judg. 10:6-9). Saul suceeded against 
them as did David, and Joab overcame them (I Sam. 
11:11; II Sam. 10:7-14). Solomon intermarried with 
them and introduced their idols into Israel (I Kin. 
11:1-5). 

47. Who Were the Amorites? 

They were one of the seven nations of Canaan and 
were governed by many independent kings (Josh. 5:1; 
Josh. 9:10). They originally inhabited a mountain 



Old Testament Subjects 48-49 

district in the south (Num. 13:29), but later acquired 
an extensive tract from Moab, east of Jordan (Num. 
21:26, 30). They had many strong cities (Num. 
32:17, 33). They were profane, wicked and idola- 
trous (Gen. 15:16; Josh. 24:15). They interfered 
with Israel (Num. 21 :2i) at times, again were peace- 
ful, but were finally brought into bondage by Solomon 
(I Kin. 9:2021). 

48, Where Was the First Altar Built? 

In Genesis 8:20 we find the first reference to an 
altar, namely that one on which Noah offered his 
sacrifice to God for deliverance from the danger of 
the Flood. Armenian tradition says it was built on 
Mount Ararat. 

49. What Language Was Spoken at Babel? 

The tower of Babel is always an interesting sub- 
ject for discussion. Philologists are divided concern- 
ing the language spoken before the "Confusion of 
Tongues" at Babel. What little we know of it is 
learned at second-hand from the testimonies of clas- 
sical authorities. The Babylonians called the locality 
of Babel "Barsip" (the Tower of Tongues). A French 
expedition to Mesopotamia found a clay cake or tablet, 
which showed that the language at some indefinitely 
remote period was written in the form of signs and 
hieroglyphics; but even this was probably long after 
the dispersion at Babel. What universal language was 
spoken by prehistoric man thousands of years ago will 
probably never be definitely known. It may have 
been Babylonian or Arabic in character, but this is 
mere conjecture. Supplementary to the Bible record, 



50-51 Difficult Bible Questions 

there are many traditions preserved concerning the 
Tower and its fate, and these mostly claim for it a 
Babylonian origin, holding that Babylonia was the 
cradle of the human race. The site of the tower, 
according to modern opinion, is identified as Birs 
'Nimrud, a huge mound covering gigantic ruins and 
situated at Felujiah in Mesopotamia; but this identifi- 
cation is by no means certain. 

50. What Was the Cause of the Babylonian 

Captivity ? 

The political cause of the captivity was the repeated 
revolt of Judah against the power of Babylon. Re- 
lying on the help of Egypt, the king broke his promise 
of fidelity and refused to pay the tribute he had 
promised to pay. The prophets uttered many warn- 
ings against this suicidal course, and still more against 
the idolatry and accompanying immorality which pre- 
vailed. They assured the nation that, beset as Judah 
was by dangers from her powerful neighbors, she 
would be safe, if only she would be faithful to God. 
But the king and people were continually forsaking 
him and turning to evil courses, until at last God gave 
them up to their enemies. This was the spiritual cause 
of the captivity. The neglect of the Sabbatic years, 
mentioned II Chronicles 36:21, was only one of many 
provocations. The writer mentions it incidentally, to 
show that what the people would not do voluntarily, 
was done when they were carried away and the land 
rested seventy years. 

51. Why Was God Angry With Balaam? 

You need to read the entire story in Numbers 22 to 
get a complete idea of the situation. Balaam was in the 



Old Testament Subjects 52-53 

first instance forbidden to go. That answer should have 
been sufficient for Balaam, but when the princes came 
with alluring offers of gifts and office and honors, he 
bade them remain to see whether there might be any- 
fresh instructions. He obviously hoped that permission 
would be given. He showed his ignorance of God's 
ways in supposing that Barak's gifts and promises could 
make any difference to God's decision. His answers 
to the men also showed that he would like to comply 
if God would let him. Probably, too, God read in his 
mind an intention to pronounce the curse for which 
Barak was willing to pay. Hence the warning by the 
way, which would brace up his wavering resolution to 
utter the word of the Lord even if it was disagreeable 
to Barak. 

52. In What Language Was the Message on 

the Wall to Belshazzar Written? 

The words, as they are found in Daniel, are pure 
Chaldee, and if they appeared in the Chaldean charac- 
ters on the wall, might have been read by any person 
present who understood the alphabet of the Babylonian 
language. Authorities differ as to the language in which 
the famous Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin appeared. 
Dr. Hales suggests that it may have been in primitive 
Hebrew; Josephus implies that it was in Greek. An- 
other explanation is that while the observers may have 
been familiar with the language, its meaning or signifi- 
cation may have been hidden from them, until explained 
by the prophet. 

53. What Are the Essential Facts About Cain? 

The Genesis narrative tells us that the Lord had no 
respect for Cain's offering, as he had that of Abel, his 



53 Difficult Bible Questions 

brother's. The reason for this must have been a wrong 
spirit in Cain (Gen. 4:3-7). Verse 7 states: "If thou 
doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou 
doest not well sin lieth at the door." There have been 
many interpretations suggested for the last part of this 
verse; but whatever translation may be given the spe- 
cific words, the whole narrative implies that the trouble 
with Cain was with his motive. He did not come 
humbly, worshipfully, as Abel did, and probably his 
offering was less costly, less of a real sacrifice. Again, 
it has been thought that in the acceptance of the animal 
sacrifice and the rejection of the fruit sacrifice there was 
a suggestion of the fact that sin requires death for an 
atonement. Abel's was the first of the long line of offer- 
ings for sin in which blood was shed, culminating in the 
sacrifice of Christ's body on the cross. 

The mark upon Cain has been a fertile subject of 
conjecture among Biblical scholars. Some hold that it 
was probably a sign given to Cain as assurance that no 
man should kill him, but the nature of the sign, and 
whether it was something perceptible to others, are 
left in uncertainty. One commentator suggests that it 
may have been an aspect of such ferocity that he be- 
came an object of horror and avoidance. 

Lastly, the question is asked about the land of Nod, 
to which Cain was banished after the murder of Abel 
and where he found his wife. The land of Nod means 
simply "land of exile." We may gather from Gen. 
4:14-15 that at the time referred to, the human family 
had multiplied considerably. Cain's wife was doubtless 
some blood relative, probably a sister. An ancient 
Arab tradition states that her name was Azura. From 
the account in Genesis, we may conjecture that al- 



Old Testament Subjects 54-55 

though only four persons are mentioned in the sacred 
narrative up to this point, the human race had increased 
rapidly (Josephus says that the Jews held a tradition 
that Adam had thirty-three sons and twenty-three 
daughters). Cain's fear of punishment may therefore 
have been directed toward his own relatives. 

54. How Many of the Children of Israel Entered 

Canaan ? 

The number of adults over twenty years of age who 
left Egypt is stated in Exodus 12 137, at about six 
hundred thousand. Allowing the normal proportion of 
children to such a host we may infer that the total 
number was probably between one and two millions. 
Three or four months later, when they were at Sinai, 
a more careful count was made and the number of 
adults is then given (Ex. 38:26) at 603,550. Two 
years later another census was taken and the number 
is stated (Num. 2:32) at exactly the same figure, but 
as the Levites were not included and there were 
22,000 of them, we may assume that by that time the 
adults numbered about 625,000. Thirty-eight years 
later, immediately after a pestilence had swept away 
large numbers and just before entering Canaan, an- 
other census was taken. The figures are given (Num- 
bers 26:21) at 601,730, which shows a slight decrease. 
Of these only two — Joshua and Caleb — were left of 
the adults who crossed the Red Sea. With these 
exceptions, the entire adult generation died in the 
wilderness. 

55. What Was the Sin of the Canaanites? 

The Canaanites were descendants of Ham (Gen. 
10:6) and comprised seven distinct nations (Deu. 



56 Difficult Bible Questions 

7:1). Though great and mighty (Num. 73:28) they 
were idolatrous, superstitious, profane and wicked 
(Deu. 29:17, Deu. 18:9-11, Lev. 18:21). They had 
many strong cities (Num. 13:28). Israel was warned 
against making league or intermarrying with them or 
following their idols or customs (Deu. 7 :2 ; Jos. 23 :i2 ; 
Ex. 23:24; Lev. 18:26, 2y). They were partially sub- 
dued by Israel (Josh. 10, Josh. 11, Judg. 1). Some 
of their descendants were still found in the time of 
Jesus (Matt. 15:22; Mark 7:26). 

56. Is It Possible to Approximate the Date of 
the Creation? 

An ever fruitful topic is the date of Creation. The 
chronology which one finds in the marginal columns 
of many of the older Bibles, notably in the Authorized 
Version of King James, is not a part of the Bible it- 
self by any means. It is the work of Archbishop 
Ussher, an illustrious prelate of the Irish Church, who 
lived 1 580- 1656. His chronological labors were di- 
rected towards affording an idea of the time that 
elasped between certain events in recorded history. 
For this purpose he took the year 1 A. D. — the begin- 
ning of the Christian era — as his starting point, and 
reckoned backwards as far as reliable recorded his- 
tory afforded good working ground. He reckoned as 
far back as 4,000 years before Christ, and then finding 
no more available material in the form of history, 
either written or inscribed, he had necessarily to stop. 
He did not by any means imply, however, nor are his 
figures interpreted by Biblical scholars to mean, that 
he had reached the point of Creation. On the contrary, 
he had simply gone as far as recorded history enabled 



Old Testament Subjects 56 

him to go. The Mosaic books in the Old Testament 
did not claim, in any sense, that the world was created 
in 4000 B. C. The first line, first verse, and first chap- 
ter of Genesis distinctly tells us that "in the beginning" 
God created the heaven and the earth. Moses was 
educated at the court of Egypt and imbibed all that 
was worth learning of the Egyptian civilization, which 
was old even at that date. But before Egypt there 
had been still older kingdoms and civilizations. Any 
one looking up the history in any good encyclopedia of 
Babylonia, Phoenicia, Chaldea and other ancient na- 
tions will form some idea of the great antiquity of that 
portion of the world's history which has not yet been 
definitely written. In the last century, the world has 
yielded up many of its secrets to excavators, and con- 
secrated scholarship has made unquestioned discov- 
eries, which are accepted by all the churches, showing 
that recorded time must now be pushed back to a pe- 
riod at least 2,000 years earlier than Ussher's computa- 
tion. How far beyond this we have to travel to get 
at the date of Creation is as much a conjecture as ever. 
Science tells us that countless ages may have passed in 
the early stages of the world's geological development ; 
and even before man appeared on the scene. It is true 
that scientists differ in this as they do in many other 
things, but the essential fact remains that the world 
is far older by many thousands of years than our 
forefathers supposed. We have better light on the 
subject than they had, and yet in no vital sense does 
that light conflict with the words of Scripture "in the 
beginning." In the New Testament also the same 
identical language is used at the opening of John's 
Gospel, chapter 1, verse 1, "In the beginning was the 



57 Difficult Bible Questions 

Word." Thus we see in both dispensations, the old 
and the new, a recognition of the fact that the date of 
the world's creation is far beyond man's computation. 

57. What Time Was Consumed in the Work of 
Creation ? 

Many have asked: "How long did it take God to 
create the world and what was the order in which the 
various beings and things were brought forth?" There 
are many theories propounded concerning Creation. 
Some interpreters contend that the Bible account 
should be taken as meaning literal days, while others, 
remembering that a day is as a thousand years in God's 
sight, interpret them as meaning periods of indefinite 
duration. This problem has been a theme of endless 
discussion and science is powerless to decide it. The 
first three days of Creation comprise the inorganic era 
and the last three days the organic era. The first two 
chapters of Genesis are repetitive of the story of Crea- 
tion, the first seven verses of chapter 2 reciting more 
briefly what was already stated in the first chapter in 
a somewhat different literary form. As to the order 
in which Creation proceeded, we have nothing else to 
guide us than Genesis and the order there given is: 
first day, light (general) ; second day, earth and water 
divided; third day, land and water outlined and 
vegetation created; fourth day, light (direct); fifth 
day, lower animals created; sixth day, mammals and 
man created ; seventh day, rest. 

As to the length of time between the Creation of 
Adam and of Eve, that is one of the disputed points 
on which no one can speak conclusively. Theorizing 



Old Testament Subjects 58 

is futile and traditions (such as some found in Jewish 
literature) do not avail. 

58* Was David Justified in Ordering Solomon 
to Have Joab and Shimei Executed? 

Dean Stanley, strange to say, avers that in the order 
given to Solomon (I Kings 2:5-9) King David "be- 
queathed a dark legacy of long cherished vengeance/ 1 
Dr. Terry's view seems more probable, that "this dying 
charge was not the offspring of personal revenge, but 
a measure of administrative wisdom." "David," says 
Wordsworth, "does not mention among Joab's sins 
that which caused him personally the most poignant 
grief, the murder of Absalom." He dwells on the 
fact that Joab had treacherously slain Abner and had 
also assassinated Amasa, shedding the blood of war in 
peace. Shimei had blasphemously insulted the royal 
majesty of Israel. David, it is true, had sworn to 
spare Shimei, but this oath was not binding on Solo- 
mon. David seems to feel that he had been too lax in 
punishing crime. His own guilt, though repented of, 
may have made him feel that the son of Zeruiah, in 
particular, was too strong for him. Hence this charge 
to Solomon as keeper of God's law and guardian of 
the kingdom's safety. In one sense, the execution of 
these men may be looked upon as an act of retributive 
justice (they being the enemies of the king), yet 
in the view of some commentators, the personal vin- 
dictiveness that David cherished in the matter, and the 
absence of a disinterested purpose to secure justice 
and the welfare and security of Israel, his kingdom, 
call for condemnation of David in his instructions to 
his son. 



59-61 Difficult Bible Questions 

59. Were Daniel's Companions in the Lions' 

Den His Brothers? 

In Dan. i :6 the companions and Daniel are spoken 
of as the children of Judah. This means of the tribe 
of Judah. There is no evidence that they were 
brothers in the sense of blood relationship. Shadrach 
was the Chaldee name of Hananiah, the chief of the 
"three children, " or young men of the tribe of Judah, 
who were Daniel's companions. He was taken captive 
with Daniel and a number of others at the first inva- 
sion of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar about B. C. 606. 
All four were young men of kingly bearing of the 
royal tribe of Judah and of superior understanding or 
education. Meshach was the Chaldee name given by 
the Babylonian court to Mishael, and Abednego was 
the name similarly bestowed on Azariah. 

60. Who Were King David's Wives? 

He had a number of wives, but those that are known 
chiefly to history are Abigail of Carmel (I Chron. 
3:1); Michal, the daughter of Saul (II Sam. 3:13); 
and Bathsheba (I Chron. 3:5). 

61. Why Was David "A Man After God's Own 

Heart"? 

This question has often been asked, both by scoffers 
and the serious. David, it is true, had fallen into deep 
sin many times ; but his struggles, his remorse, his 
repentance, his efforts at reparation — these also must 
be considered. He lived in a rude and warlike age. 
His whole life, as one biographer says, was "the faith- 
ful struggle of an earnest human soul toward what 
was good and best — a struggle often baffled, yet never 
ended." This was the character of the man who was 



Old Testament Subjects 62 

illustrious as soldier, shepherd, poet, king, prophet; 
who kindled patriotism, united Israel, and made it a 
great nation, and who drove out the worship of strange 
gods in the land. In view of all the blessings that 
came to the Hebrew race through David's reign; in 
view also of "the oath sworn unto David," and of the 
many evidences of his repentance and his trust in God, 
as expressed in the Psalms, his career must be re- 
garded as a whole rather than judged of by specific 
acts, if we would try to find out how David in any 
degree merited the commendation which the sacred 
historians accord him. 

62. From Whom Were the Edomites Descended ? 

They were descendants of Esau. They inhabited a 
fertile and rich country specially given to them (Deu. 
2:5; Gen. 27:39). Their country was traversed by 
roads though it was mountainous and rocky (Num. 
20:17; Jer. 49:16). They were governed by dukes 
and later by kings (Gen. 36:15-30; Num. 20:14). I n 
character they are said to have been wise, proud and 
self-confident, strong and cruel, vindictive, idolatrous 
and superstitious (Jer. 49:7, 16, 19; Eze. 25:12; 
II Chron. 25:14, 20; Jer. 27:3). They inhabited the 
cities of Avith, Pau, Bozrah, Teman and others. 
Though they were implacable enemies of Israel, it was 
forbidden to hate them (Deu. 23:7) or to spoil, and 
they might be received into the congregation in the 
third generation (Deu. 23 :8). Saul made war against 
them and David conquered them (I Sam. 14:47; II 
Sam. 8:14). They took refuge in Egypt and returned 
after David's death (I King 11 :i7-22) when they con- 
federated with Israel's enemies only to again be over- 



63-65 Difficult Bible Questions 

thrown (2 Chron. 20:10) but finally aided Babylon 
against Judah (Psa. 137:7, Oba. 11). 

63. What Became of Elijah's Body? 

The bodies of Elijah and Enoch were doubtless 
changed or transformed as Paul describes in I Cor. 
15:51, 52 — the verses immediately following the well- 
known passage, that flesh cannot inherit the kingdom. 
They were changed into spiritualized bodies like in 
some degree that with which Christ rose from the 
dead. His resurrection body seemed to be made of 
flesh, but it was clearly different from that which he 
possessed before his death. All the redeemed, the 
saints who have died before Christ's coming and those 
who are alive when he comes, are promised these new 
"celestial" bodies for the heavenly life. These are 
the views of commentators who have discussed the 
subject. 

64. Was There Rain Before the Flood? 

Read Genesis 2 4-6. This, according to some geol- 
ogists, indicates that the earth, being then in a cool- 
ing condition, had no rain; and. they also affirm that 
there may have been none until the great precipitation 
at the Flood cleared the atmosphere, and established 
new conditions. (See chapters 8 and 9.) Of course, 
these are merely scientific speculations or conjectures, 
but they are not opposed to Scripture. 

65. What Was the Population of Earth Before 

and After the Flood? 

All the information we have in Scripture concerning 
the population of the earth before the Flood is con- 
tained in Genesis chapters 4, 5 and 6. It is made 



Old Testament Subjects 66-67 

clear in Gen. 5 14 that Adam had a numerous progeny. 
Jewish tradition says he had thirty-three sons and 
twenty-three daughters. Chapter 5 :i tells of the in- 
creased population. There must have been intermar- 
riages. This is the view generally accepted by com- 
mentators, as the only reasonable explanation, where 
no other light can be had on the subject. The only 
record we have of the repopulation of the world after 
the Flood is that found in Genesis, ninth, tenth and 
eleventh chapters. 

66. Was the Rainbow Visible before the Flood? 

There is no recorded evidence that a rainbow was 
visible from the earth before the Flood. Some com- 
mentators hold that the conditions described in Gen- 
esis 2 :6, "But there went up a mist from the earth," 
etc., lasted until the atmospheric change wrought by 
the Flood and that the rainbow was a natural conse- 
quence of such change. This, however, despite the 
fact that scientific support is claimed for such view, is 
merely conjecture. The Bible (Gen. 9:13-17) is very 
clear to the effect that God established the rainbow at 
that time as "the token of the covenant" between Him 
and mankind and hence we need no conjecture. 

67. How Soon After Adam's Fall Did Idolatry 

Begin ? 

Adam and some of his descendants as late as the 
time of the Flood, are believed to have lived under a 
revealed system, in which, through their patriarchs and 
otherwise, they had a knowledge of God sufficient for 
their condition. Afterwards there arose the nature- 
worship, called Fetishism, consisting of the setting 



68-69 Difficult Bible Questions 

up and worshipping of animals, trees and stones, etc. — 
an idolatry invented by those who for their sins had 
been forsaken of God (Romans 1:28). There is no 
distinct mention in the Bible of any idols prior to the 
time of the Flood, but it is reasonable to suppose that 
idolatry was one of the abominations for which that 
terrible punishment was visited on the earth. The first 
positive indications of idolatry which appear in history 
are found in the worship of Set or Sitekh (equivalent 
to the Hebrew Patriarch, Seth), to whom divine honors 
were paid by the Egyptians. Some Jewish writers in- 
terpret Genesis 4:26 to mean that Enos, the son of 
Seth, was the originator of idolatry in that he paid 
divine honors to the host of heaven instead of to God 
alone. 

68. What Is Known of the Hittites? 

They were descendants of Canaan's son Heth. 
One of the seven Canaanitish nations, they dwelt in 
Hebron and were governed by kings (Deu. 7:1 ; Gen. 
23:2, 3, 19; I Kin. 10:29). Their land was promised 
to Israel and it was commanded to destroy them; but 
Israel did not destroy them entirely (Deu. 7:1, 2, 24; 
Josh. 14:13 ; Judg. 3 :5). Among their prominent per- 
sonages were Ephron, Ahimelech and Uriah (Gen. 
49:30; I Sam. 26:6; II Sam. 11:6, 21). Esau, Solo- 
mon and many other Israelites intermarried with the 
Hittites. They were a warlike people and made many 
conquests. 

69. What Is Known of the Hivites? 

They formed one of the seven nations of Canaan, 
descended from Canaan (Gen. 10:15, 17). They dwelt 



Old Testament Subjects 70-71 

near Lebanon. The Shechemites and Gibeonites were 
affiliated with them (Judg. 3:3; Gen. 34:2; Josh. 
9:3-7). Esau intermarried with them. Their land 
was promised to Israel and it was commanded to 
destroy them (Deu. 7:1, 2, 24). In the reign of Solo- 
mon, a remnant of the Hivites was made tributary to 
Israel (I Kin. 9:20, 21). 

70. Who Were the Ishmaelites? 

They were descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's son, 
and were divided into twelve tribes (Gen. 25:16; 
Gen. 16:15, 16). They were also called Hagarites, 
Hagarenes and Arabians (I Chron. 5:10; Psa. 83:6; 
Isa. 13:20). They were governed by kings, were rich 
in cattle and dwelt in tents (Jer. 25:24; Isa. 13:20; I 
Chron. 5:21). Though they were the merchants of 
the East and traveled around in large caravans (Gen. 
37:25; Job 6:19), they were frequently lawless and 
would waylay and plunder travelers (Jer. 3:2). After 
harassing Israel, they were overcome by Gideon (Judg. 
8:10-24; II Chron. 5:10; II Chron. 26:7). It would 
seem that later they became more peacefully inclined, 
as they sent presents to Kings Solomon and Jehosha- 
phat (I Kin. 10:15; II Chron. 17:11). 

71. When Did the Change in Jacob's Spiritual 

Nature Occur? 

It began at Bethel but the change there was ex- 
tremely slight. Jacob regarded his vision there very 
much as a business arrangement. If God would help 
him and give him bread to eat and bring him 
back safe, then God should be his God and he would 
give him a tenth of all. At Jabbok the crisis was much 



72 Difficult Bible Questions 

more far-reaching. He realized there his danger and 
his need of a blessing. He no longer bargained with 
God, he saw that his own strength was futile, he was 
a humble suppliant for God's favor. From that night 
on he was a different man, by no means perfect, but 
far better than before. 

72. Did Jephthah Really Offer Up His Daughter 
As a Sacrifice ? 

Both the Authorized and Revised Versions leave the 
question in doubt, and commentators have been divided 
in opinion as to whether she was sacrified or doomed 
to live the life of a recluse. Human sacrifices are an 
abomination unto the Lord. A new reading or trans- 
lation which several notable scholars have urged as 
the correct one is : "It shall surely be the Lord's or 
I will offer up to him a burnt offering." Hebrew 
scholars declare this to be the more accurate render- 
ing. (See Judges 11:30, 31, 39.) It changes the as- 
pect of the case and makes Jephthah to say practically 
that if the first living thing that came forth from his 
house to meet him was one that would be unacceptable, 
then a burnt offering of an acceptable character would 
be substituted. This would lead to the conclusion that 
the daughter was not sacrificed, but condemned to a 
life of perpetual virginity and a burnt offering offered 
up in her stead. Several eminent writers, including 
Joseph Kinchi, Ben Gerson and Bechai (Jewish au- 
thorities) and a number of Christian authors, held that 
instead of being sacrificed she was shut up in a house 
specially prepared by her father and visited there by 
the daughters of Israel four days in a year as long 
as she lived. In support of this theory it is pointed 



Old Testament Subjects 73-75 

out that the Hebrew term employed to express Jeph- 
thah's vow is the word neder, which means a "conse- 
cration" and not che-rem, which means "destruction." 

73. Why Do the Jews Face the East When 

Praying ? 

In Jerusalem, the Jews always turned their faces 
toward the "holy hill" of the temple while praying 
(see Dan. 6:10; II Chron. 6:34). The Samaritans, on 
the contrary, faced Mt. Gerizim. In the court of the 
temple, the Jews in prayer faced the temple itself (see 
I Kings 8:38) to the Holy of Holies (see Ps. 5:8). 
Daniel, while praying in exile, opened his window to- 
ward Jerusalem (see Dan. 6:10). Modern Jews in 
Europe and America customarily face the East in 
prayer. It was a custom among the early Christians 
to face the East but that has long been discontinued. 
Mohammedans face in the direction of Mecca. 

74. Will the Jews Be Restored to Palestine at 

Chrises Second Coming? 

Students of prophecy are not agreed on the subject. 
The majority infer, from various passages, that they 
will be restored before the coming of Christ in the! 
second stage of that coming. The first stage is thought 
to be in the air to summon those Christians who are 
looking for him, to meet him (see I Thess. 4:16, 17). 
The second stage is after the great tribulation when 
he comes to reign. 

75. How Often Was Jerusalem Destroyed ? 

The Holy City has been captured and recaptured 
many times by contending forces. In several of the 
sieges it has been partially ruined, but in at least four 



76-77 Difficult Bible Questions 

it has been practically destroyed, the first about 1400 
B. C, when captured by the tribes of Judah and Sime- 
on ; the second in 586 by Nebuchadnezzar ; the third in 
170 B.C. by Antiochus Epiphanes; the fourth, and 
doubtless most terrible, in 70 A. D., by Titus. The 
city was restored by Hadrian in 135 A. D., and since 
then has changed hands many times. It now belongs 
to Turkey, and has about 60,000 inhabitants. 

76. Why Was the Temple Built in Jerusalem? 

In II Sam. 24:16-25 we learn how the threshing 
floor of Araunah came to be chosen for the site of an 
altar of commemoration and sacrifice. Moreover, 
Scripture and Jewish tradition unite in pointing to that 
threshing floor as the spot upon which Abraham pre- 
pared to offer Isaac (although some eminent authori- 
ties have disputed this). Read also the account of the 
purchase of the site from Oman (Araunah) in I 
Chron. 21:26-28; and in the next chapter (I Chron. 
22:1, 9, 10) which shows how David had a divine 
revelation that his son should build the temple there. 

77. Who Was Job? 

According to leading* commentators, Job was a 
personage of distinction, wealth and influence who 
lived in the north of Arabia Deserta, near the Eu- 
phrates, some 1800 B. C. His life was patriarchal, his 
language the Hebrew of that early day, when it was 
interspersed with Syriac and Arabic. He lived before 
Moses. His book is probably the oldest book in the 
world. It is now interpreted as a public debate in 
poetic form, dealing with the Divine government. 
It abounds in figurative language. The "day" men- 



Old Testament Subjects 78 

tioned in Job 2:1 was one appointed for the angels to 
give an account of their ministry to God. Evil is per- 
sonified in Satan, who also comes to make report. The 
question to Satan and his response are simply a dra- 
matic or poetic form of opening the great controversy 
which follows. 

78. Did God Give Job into the Hands of Satan 
to Be Tempted ? 

"Tempted" is scarcely the word to use in that case. 
Job was tried or tested. The question was what his 
motive was in serving God. Satan with his natural 
doubt about any one having pure motives, asserted 
that Job served God only for what he gained by it, 
and that if his property was taken away from him, he 
would curse God. So Job was put to the proof, to see 
what he would do under trial, and whether he was 
really as disinterested as God believed him to be. The 
object of the author appears to have been to correct 
a false view of adversity, which view was prevalent in 
his time. People had the idea that severe calamities 
were punishments dealt out by God because of sin. 
When a man of good moral character, therefore, was 
in trouble, people suspected that he had sinned secretly, 
and that God was punishing him for it. It was often 
a cruel and unjust suspicion. In writing this descrip- 
tion, the author evidently was trying to eradicate it. 
After reading such a book, a man who saw another in 
trouble, instead of despising him as a sinner, might 
say, "Perhaps he is being tried as Job was," and so 
might sympathize instead of blaming him. Our con- 
cern should be to learn the lesson the book was de- 
signed to teach, rather than to discuss the question 



79-80 Difficult Bible Questions 

whether it is history or parable, for that question can- 
not now be authoritatively answered. 

79. Did God "Blot Out" the Day on Which Job 

Was Born? 

This question is doubtless prompted by the ancient, 
tradition or superstition that we have less days in Feb- 
ruary than any other month, as Job was born in Febru- 
ary. This of course is a fallacy. There was no 
February in the time of Job, 1520 B. C. The months, 
or divisions of time, were not as we have them now. 
The year of the Jews consisted of twelve lunar months 
of twenty-nine and thirty days alternately, a thirteenth 
being from time to time introduced to accommodate it 
to the sun and seasons. Let it be noted that while Job 
cursed his birthday, he did not curse his Maker, so 
why should the Lord drop a day on account of a little 
weakness in his servant, who, despite his great suffer- 
ings, never uttered any reproach against the Author 
of his being? Our months as at present, we have from 
the Romans. With those people February had orig- 
inally twenty-nine days in an ordinary year, but when 
the Roman Senate decreed that the eighth month 
should bear the name of Augustus, a day was taken 
from February and given to August, which had then 
only thirty, that it might not be inferior to July, named 
in honor of Julius Csesar. 

80. Are the Speeches of Job's Friends to Be Re- 

garded as Inspired ? 

This question is answered authoritatively in the 
book itself (see Job 42:7), where God is represented 
as saying, "My wrath is kindled against thee and thy 



Old Testament Subjects 81 

two friends; for ye have not spoken of me the thing 
that is right." One gets a clearer idea of the book by 
regarding it as a symposium on the problem of suffer- 
ing, each speaker being a representative of a school of 
thought. Each speaker keeps to the same aspect of 
the subject but all agree in regarding unusual suffer- 
ing as an evidence of unusual sin. They imply 
that in Job's case, he being outwardly so good a man, 
his sin was aggravated by hypocrisy. This was unjust, 
because, as we learn by the first chapter, it was pre- 
cisely because he was so good a man that his affliction 
came upon him. The author of the book evidently 
wished to administer a warning to the people of his 
time against being uncharitable in their inferences. 

81. Is the Book of Job a Real History or a 
Dramatic Allegory? 

Job is believed to have been a real personage — a 
type of the earliest patriarchs, a man of high intelli- 
gence and great faith. The story is cast in dramatic 
form. Professor S. S. Curry, of Yale and Harvard 
Divinity Schools, thus outlines it : the place, a hill out- 
side the city ; a rising storm, flashing lightning, rolling 
thunder and a rainbow ; the speakers, God, the patri- 
arch Job, his friends, and Satan ; the theme, the 
mystery of human suffering, and human existence. ,, To 
which may be added, a sublime faith in the divine 
wisdom, righteousness and justice. The book of Job 
is regarded by the highest Bible scholarship as a spir- 
itual allegory. The name Job is derived from an Ara- 
bic word signifying "repentance," although Job him- 
self is held to be a real personage. (See Ezek. 14:14 
and James 5 :ii.) 



82-84 Difficult Bible Questions 

82. Why Did the Wicked Kings of Judah Let 

Their Sons Pass through Fire? 

It was a heathen form of worship to Molech, Mil- 
corn or Chemosh, which the Israelites had borrowed 
or adapted from the Moabites and Amnonites. Human 
sacrifices were made in high places to Molech. The 
chief interpreters Jarchi, Kimchi and Maimonides 
wrote that in the worship of Molech, the children were 
not burned, but were made to pass before two burning 
pyres as a purificatory rite. It is quite clear, however, 
that in many cases lives w r ere actually sacrificed (see 
Psalm 106:37, 38; Jer. 7:31). It was assumed that 
by this rite the victims were purged from dross of the 
body and attained union with the deity. 

83. Who Were the "Lost Tribes"? 

The "lost tribes," so-called, were the Jews carried 
into captivity by Shalmaneser (II Kings 17:6), and 
chiefly belonging to Israel or the ten tribes. Many 
theories as to their location and their descendants have 
been ventilated, and they have been successively located 
(by ingenious investigators) in Hindustan, Tartary, 
China, Africa, Great Britain and among the aborigines 
of North America. More reasonable conjectures hold 
that while some returned after the exile, and others 
were left in Samaria, many remained in Assyria and 
afterward joined with the Jews in forming colonies 
throughout the East, so that, in a certain sense, they 
shared the ultimate history of their brethren of Judah. 

84. What Secular Evidence Have We of the 

Fate of Lot's Wife? 

The pillar which is mentioned in the story concern- 
ing the fate of Lot's wife, in Genesis 19, is referred 



Old Testament Subjects 85 

to by a number of writers. Josephus (in Antiquities 
I, ii, 4) wrote that it still remained in his day, and 
he had seen it — L e., the peculiar formation of crum- 
bling, crystalline rock associated by tradition with the 
event. Clemens Romanus, Irenaeus and Benjamin of 
Tudela also wrote of the strange formation as visible 
in their day, but later writers stated that it had ceased 
to exist. It is related that, by a singular coincidence, 
Lieutenant Lynch, who led an American exploring 
party around the Dead Sea, found on the southwestern 
shore, at a place called by the Arabs Usdum, a pillar 
some forty feet high, composed of salt crystals, capped 
with carbonate of lime, which he assumed to have been 
detached by the action of the winter rains upon the 
rock-salt hills. Professor Palmer claims in one of his 
books to have seen this same formation, which the 
Arabs, in their usual manner, had connected with the 
Bible story, although it is not at all certain that the 
locality is identical with that indicated in Genesis. 
Several commentators hold that the geological charac- 
ter of the rocks and the prevalence of salt crystals 
justify the conclusion that the Bible passage might be 
interpreted to mean "like a pillar of salt," and that 
the body of Lot's wife "had become fixed for a time to 
the soil by saline or bituminous incrustations." 

85. Who and What Was Melchisedec ? 

It is in the fourteenth chapter of Genesis that Mel- 
chisedec is historically presented to us. The incident 
and its record, although so brief, and standing in such 
singular isolation from the thread of the history which 
it interrupts, is not only in itself most striking and 
interesting, but also in its typical teaching profoundly 



85 Difficult Bible Questions 

instructive. How suddenly and altogether unexpect- 
edly does Melchisedec here appear before us — a most 
kingly and majestic form, yet clad in priestly robes, 
and with the mystic emblems of eucharistic offering — 
bread and wine — in his hands. We see those priestly 
hands raised in blessing; we observe the great patri- 
arch, Abraham — the father of the faithful and the 
Friend of God — bowing before the mysterious priest- 
king, and presenting to him the tithes of all his spoil ; 
and then, as abruptly as it appeared, the vision passes 
away, and for nearly a thousand years the voice of 
inspiration utters not again the name of Mechisedec. 
Then, however, in an ecstatic Psalm of a most dis- 
tinctly Messianic character, and descriptive of our 
Lord's exaltation in the day of his power, we meet 
with it once more in the solemn declaration: "The 
Lord hath sworn and will not repent, thou art a priest 
forever, after the order of Melchisedec (Ps. 110:4). 
Again, something like a thousand years pass away, and 
then, once more, the writer of the Epistle to the He- 
brews take up the subject of this mysterious personage, 
who, "Without father, without mother, without gene- 
alogy, having neither beginning of days, or end of life ; 
but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest 
continually" (Heb. 7:3) ; and on the two brief refer- 
ences to him, above given, which are all that the 
Scriptures contain, founds an argument to show the 
superiority of Christ's priesthood, as being "after the 
order of Melchisedec/' to that of Aaron, or Levi, which 
it had superseded. 

Who was Melchisedec ? Much labor has been wasted 
in attempts to answer the question. Later Jewish tra- 
dition identified him with Shem ; and it is certain that 



Old Testament Subjects 85 

that patriarch was not only alive in the days of Abra- 
ham, but even continued to live till Jacob was fifty 
years old. (Compare Gen. ii:ii with verses 12:26, 
21:5, 25:7-26.) According to others he belonged to 
the family of Ham, or of Japheth; and it has been 
said that this is necessarily implied by the language 
of the Apostle when drawing a parallel between Mel- 
chisedec and Christ, he says that our Lord belonged to 
"a tribe of which no man gave attendance at the altar." 
Some, again, have suggested that he was an incarnate 
angel, or other superhuman creature, who lived for a 
time among men. Others have held that he was an 
early manifestation of the Son of God ; and a sect, 
called the Melchisedecians, asserted that he was "an 
incarnation of the Holy Ghost." But, in all these 
conjectures, the fact has been strangely overlooked that 
the reticence of Scripture on the point is typical and 
significant, for, could it be determined who Melchise- 
dec really was, it could no longer be said that he was 
"without father, without mother, without genealogy" ; 
which statement is to be understood, not as implying 
that he was not a natural descendant of Adam, but 
that he designedly appears and disappears in the 
sacred narrative without mention either of his parent- 
age or death. 

There can, however, be no question that, whoever 
Melchisedec may have been, he was an eminent type 
of Christ. This is placed beyond doubt, not only by 
the language of the 110th Psalm — the Messianic char- 
acter of which has ever been recognized by Jews and 
Christians alike — but especially by the argument of 
the Apostle, in the seventh chapter of the Epistle to 
the Hebrews, in the course of which there occurs the 



86-87 Difficult Bible Questions 

explicit declaration that he was — in the various re- 
spects mentioned — "made like unto the Son of God." 

86. Who Were the Moabites? 

They were the descendants of Lot and were neigh- 
bors of the Amorites on the opposite side of the River 
Arnon (Num. 21 113). They were governed by kings 
and possessed many great cities (Num. 21 :28-3o; Is. 
15:1; Num. 23:7). They were proud, arrogant, idol- 
atrous, superstitious, rich, confident and prosperous. 
They were mighty men of war (Is. \6:6yl Kin. 11 :?; 
Jer. 27:3; Jer. 48:7, 11, 14). The Amorites deprived 
them of a large part of their territory (Num. 21 :26). 
The Moabites refused to let Israel pass through their 
country and were so greatly impressed and alarmed 
by the multitude of the Israelitish host that, with 
Midian, they sent Balaam to curse it (Num. 22 to 24). 
Subsequently, Israel was enticed into their idolatry and 
even intermarried with them. They were always hos- 
tile to Israel until Saul subdued them (I Sam. 14:47) 
and were later made tributary to David and the Jewish 
kings (II Sam. 8:2-12; II Kin. 3:4), but finally joined 
Babylon against Judah (II Kin. 24:2). 

87. Why Did Moses Strike the Rock? 

The account in Num. 20 very clearly shows that 
Moses disobeyed the divine command in striking the 
rock as he did. For the moment he apparently lost 
his faith, and his temper as well. He had been ex- 
plicitly instructed to "speak unto the rock" (verse 8) 
instead of which he addressed the people in hasty and 
passionate words and smote the rock twice. (See Ps. 
106:32, 33.) His whole attitude betrayed his doubt, 



Old Testament Subjects 88 

not of God's power, but of his will to help a people 
who had been rebellious. Further, Moses was irrev- 
erent (see verse 12) in that his language and bearing 
detracted from the sanctity of the occasion and was 
therefore displeasing to God. He had been entrusted 
with a great enterprise and his perfect obedience to 
and implicit faith in God were indispensable. As the 
result showed, his failure involved serious conse- 
quences for the whole nation. 

88. What Was the Dispute Over Moses' Body 
Between Michael and Satan? 

The passage in Jude 1 :g referring to the dispute 
between Michael and Satan over the body of Moses, 
is regarded by Vitringa, Lardner, McKnight and other 
distinguished commentators as symbolical, "the body 
of Moses" being intended to represent the Mosaic law 
and institutions (see Zech. 3:1), in the same manner 
in which modern Christians call the Church "the body 
of Christ." According to others, it has reference to a 
Jewish legend connected with the secret burial of the 
great lawgiver (Deu. 34:6). The Tar gum of Jonathan 
attributes the burial of Moses to the hands of angels, 
led by Michael as the guardian of Israel. Other views 
set forth in the Hebrew books are that Satan disputed 
the burial, claiming the body because of the blood of 
the Egyptian whom Moses slew, and because of the 
leader's sin at Meribah. Having "the power of death," 
he opposes the raising of Moses' body again for these 
reasons, but the latter's visible presence with Enoch 
and Elijah at the Transfiguration gave evidence of 
Michael's triumph, and was also a pledge of the coming 
resurrection. Josephus, the Jewish historian (in Anti- 



89-90 Difficult Bible Questions 

quities 4:8), states that God hid the body of Moses, 
lest it should be worshiped by the people. 

89. Did Nebuchadnezzar Literally Eat Grass? 

We do not know any more on the subject than is 
related in the Bible. The natural inference from the 
narrative is that the king was temporarily deprived of 
his reason, and insane people often do things as un- 
natural as eating grass. There is nothing improbable 
in the Biblical statement. On the other hand, some 
authorities suggest that the narrative means nothing 
more than that the king left his palace and the cares 
of state and lived the life of a peasant for seven years ; 
or, as we might say, vegetated in rural seclusion ; but 
the plain statement of the text is that generally ac- 
cepted. Daniel 4:35-37 indicates that he became, at 
least outwardly, a believer in the true God. 

90. What Were the Dimensions and Material 

of Noah's Ark? 

According to the directions in Genesis 6:15, the Ark 
was 300 cubits long, 50 cubits broad and 30 cubits 
high. Bible students have been greatly puzzled over 
the length of the cubit, which seems to have varied 
greatly in ancient times. It is evident, however (from 
Deu. 3:11), that it was taken as a measure from the 
human body, and may have been either from the 
wrist to the end of the third figure, or the entire length 
of the lower or forearm, from the elbow to the wrist, 
or even from the elbow to the finger-point. One au- 
thority, Celsus, says the cubit was identified with the 
ulna, or under and larger of the two bones of the arm. 
The Egyptian cubit, which the Hebrews may have 



Old Testament Subjects 90 

taken, measured six hand-breadths and the Jewish 
rabbins (as the Mishna states) assigned six hand- 
breadths to the Mosaic cubit, while Josephus says a 
cubit was equal to two spans, the span being equal to 
three hand-breadths. Ezek. 40:5, 43:13 speaks of the 
cubit "which was a cubit and a hand-breadth" which 
was the Babylonian cubit. It would thus seem that 
the Ark, though its size cannot be confidently stated, 
was a very spacious vessel, probably exceeding 500 
feet in length, fully 85 feet broad and over 52 feet 
high. In 1609 Peter Jansen of Horn, in Holland, 
built a vessel of these proportions and found that it 
would stow fully a third more cargo than ships of 
its size built in the ordinary manner. It had 3,600,000 
cubic feet of space, and after nine-tenths had been 
assigned for food storage there was still room for 7,000 
pairs of animals, each with 50 cubic feet of space. It 
was, in fact, a huge floating storehouse, rather than 
a ship. 

As to the materials of which the Ark was built, we 
find in Genesis 6:14 that Noah is told to make an ark 
of "gopher" wood. There are various conjectures as 
to what kind of wood this was. Bunsen holds that it 
was a wood found only in Egypt; Dietrich believes it 
was a heavy reed-like growth ; Gesenius affirms that 
it was pine, fir or cedar, and Bochart says cypress. 
Chaldee translators declare it to have been the sissu, 
a dark-colored wood of Arabian growth and highly 
valued. A majority hold to the opinion that cypress 
was meant, on account of its enduring qualities. 

As to the time occupied in building it, much has 
been said but little of real worth. The only Bible pas- 
sage supposably referable to this question is Genesis 



91-92 Difficult Bible Questions 

6:3. This passage is variously interpreted. By some 
it is held to refer to a shortening of human life; by 
others it is interpreted as meaning that the period stated 
would be further granted as a respite — an opportunity 
for repentance — failing which the divine presence (the 
Shecinah, which had hitherto continued at the gate of 
Eden) would be withdrawn from the world on ac- 
count of its wickedness. The best answer is that 
nowhere is it stated in the Bible how long Noah was 
engaged in building the Ark. The Lord had offered 
a respite of 120 years, after the warning to the human 
race (see I Peter 3 120; II Peter 2 15), and it was dur- 
ing this period that Noah, who was a "preacher of 
righteousness," not only labored in the work of awak- 
ening the people to the enormity of their sin and of 
urging them to repentance, but also used a portion of 
that period in preparing the Ark for the emergency 
that would arise, if the people did not listen to his cry 
for repentance. 

91. What Were the "Bitter Herbs" Used at the 

Passover? 

Since endive, chicory, wild lettuce, or nettles, were 
important articles of food to the ancient Egyptians, it 
is likely that these were the bitter herbs of the Pass- 
over feast, more especially so, as they are at the present 
time eaten by the Jews in the East. 

92. Were the Patriarchs Really As Old As the 

Bible Record States? 

Some of the "higher critics" claim that the ancient 
calendar of the antediluvians made the year really a 
month, or lunar period. Others, with somewhat more 



Old Testament Subjects 93 

reason, assert that a year was a season of growth equal 
to three of our months. Hensler and Hufeland, two 
German authorities, claim that the patriarchal year 
was three months till Abraham's time, eight months 
till Joseph's time, and thereafter twelve months. One 
eminent Bible scholar has pointed out that if we accept 
the monthly year theory, Mahalaleel's sixty-five years 
before the birth of his son Jared would m!ake him a 
parent at five years and three months of our reckon- 
ing; Enoch would be the same age when his son 
Methuselah was born, and the ages of the other patri- 
archs at the birth of their children would be equally 
preposterous. Of course, such conclusions absolutely 
condemn the monthly year theory. Conditions among 
the antediluvians were totally different from those af- 
ter the Flood. There had been no rain, and the sun 
and planets were not visible ; in the moist atmosphere, 
growth was greatly stimulated and all natural condi- 
tions tended to animal and vegetable longevity, pre- 
cisely as the Bible indicates. Besides, as that period 
produced animal types of giant proportions, created 
for strength and endurance, the analogy of nature 
would seem to demand that man should bear some har- 
monious proportion to his surroundings. Genesis 6:4 
(first clause) clearly implies this. Age and stature, 
not only human but otherwise, became greatly dimin- 
ished after the Flood. 

93. Was Pharaoh Drowned in the Red Sea? 

All the evidence is against the theory that he was 
drowned in the Red Sea. Some very interesting in- 
formation, furnishing striking confirmation of the 
, Bible narrative, has recently been obtained, by deci- 



93 Difficult Bible Questions 

phering the inscriptions on ancient Egyptian monu- 
ments. From these it appears that the Pharaoh who 
"refused to let the people go" was named Menephthah. 
He was the youngest son of the great Pharaoh, Ram- 
eses II, the Pharaoh who oppressed the Hebrews and 
ordered the killing of the male infants, and whose 
death is mentioned in Exodus 2 123. Menephthah was 
an old man, at least sixty, when he came to the throne, 
and was constitutionally timid and feeble. He joined 
with him in the government his brilliant son Seti, a 
young man resembling in person and character his 
grandfather, the great Rameses. Seti was virtually 
king though his father, Menephthah, was king in 
name. The Bible alludes to Seti as "the firstborn of 
Pharaoh who sat on the throne" (Ex. 12:29). This 
young man's tomb has been found, and a record of his 
achievements, showing him to have been a great gen- 
eral and administrator. But his name does not appear 
in the list of the Pharaohs and the inscription on his 
tomb shows that he never became king, but died sud- 
denly, while still only a prince. The Bible tells us 
how he died. It was on the night when the angel slev^ 
the firstborn. Menephthah, as we know by the Bible 
narrative, pursued the Hebrews. He had no son now 
to take command as on former occasions. He was 
then an old man eighty-two years of age. What more 
likely than that, when he saw the Israelites descend 
into the Red Sea, he should send on his army and stay 
behind himself, not caring at his age, and at night, to 
undertake so perilous a journey. The Egyptian records 
state that once before, on the eve of battle, when he 
should have led his army, the old man had a conven- 
ient vision, ordering him not to enter the battle but to 



Old Testament Subjects 94 

give the command to his son. He doubtless excused 
himself on this occasion and so saved his life. A par- 
allel case of a father and son reigning simultaneously 
is found in Belshazzar, who, though exercising kingly 
functions, does not appear on the list of kings. He 
was associated in government with his father, Nabon- 
nidus, and, like Seti in Egypt, died before his father. 

94. What Is Meant by "I Will Harden Pharaoh's 
Heart"? 

This expression in Exodus 7 13 has been a stumbling- 
block to many. There is a point reached by those who 
have long persisted in wicked courses which is known 
as judicial blindness, a point at which — God's re- 
straining spirit being withdrawn — they become unable 
to distinguish right from wrong or good from evil. 
They grow hardened and morally incorrigible. (See 
Mark 3:5; Rom. 11:25; II Cor. 3:14; Eph. 4:18.) 
Under such circumstances, the offender turns even 
blessings into sin by abusing them, and unless over- 
taken by some great adversity, continues in his course, 
blind to consequences. This was doubtless the case 
with Pharaoh. Egypt had sinned deeply, and so long 
as its rulers were unchecked by some stronger power, 
they would continue to sin. Pharaoh, long accustomed 
to the abuse of power, steeled himself against all sense 
of justice and mercy, and this the "permissive act of 
providence" allowed, in order that the culminating 
punishment should be the more severe. In other 
words, Pharaoh was permitted to go on in his sin, in 
order that his fate might be made an awful example 
to the whole world. 



95-96 Difficult Bible Questions 

95, If God "Hardened" Pharaoh's Heart, Was 

It Possible for Him to do Otherwise than 
He Did? 

The true interpretation is that the divine message 
of warning and the plagues which followed were the 
occasion of Pharaoh's heart being hardened. Thus 
the expression which has been translated as "har- 
dened/' is, in Hebrew, "strong/' implying that the in- 
fluence of the events had been to make the king's heart 
stubborn or rebellious. (See Ex. 7:13, 14, 8:19, and 
9:35.) Elsewhere in the same narrative the Hebrew 
expression is capable of being translated "made heavy" 
(as in Ex. 7:14 and 8:15 and 32, also Ex. 9:34). The 
passage in Exodus 7:23, which may be rendered as in 
the Authorized Version, and also as "he (Pharaoh) 
set his heart even to this," expresses the condition of 
Egypt's ruler, who had set his face like a flint against 
Jehovah, and was alternately depressed and defiant, 
but not repentant. 

96. Who Were the Philistines? 

Their origin is nowhere expressly stated in the 
Bible; but since the prophets describe them! as "the 
Philistines from Caphtor" (Amos 9:7), and "the rem- 
nant of the maritime district of Caphtor" (Jer. 47:4), 
it is probable that they were the "Caphtorim which 
came out of Caphtor," and who expelled the Avim 
from their lands and occupied them (Deu. 2:23), and 
that they were the Caphtorim mentioned in the Mosaic 
genealogical table among the descendants of Mizraim. 
There is equal authority for believing Caphtor to have 
been the island of Cyprus, or a land somewhere be- 
tween Egypt and Ethiopia, or a part of Northera 



Old Testament Subjects 97-97A 

Egypt. Some have claimed that Caphtor and the 
modern island of Crete are identical ; but the best 
authorities do not agree with this conclusion. 

97. Who Wrote the Book of Proverbs? 

Some ancient authorities, rabbins and others attrib- 
ute the book to Solomon; others hold that it has a 
composite origin and is the work of a number of writ- 
ers. The ablest modern critics hold the latter opinion. 
It is probable that Solomon was the author of the 
portion beginning with the first verse of the tenth 
chapter and ending with the sixteenth verse of the 
twenty-second chapter. As we learn from the first 
verse of the twenty-fifth chapter, the collection of 
proverbs extending to the end of the twenty-ninth 
chapter was also attributed to him, but was not com- 
piled until 250 years after his death. The remainder 
of the book appears to be composed of six portions by 
different hands at different periods. One of these is 
the introduction, which occupies the first nine chap- 
ters. This was probably written by the man who 
compiled the whole book, but whose name is unknown. 

97A. Who Composed the Psalms? 

The Book of Psalms (which is the Psalter of the 
Hebrews) has many authors, the principal one being 
David. Some are attributed to Hezekiah, Josiah, and 
Zerubbabel, two (the 72d and 127th) to Solomon, 
several to the Levites and the Asaphites, one, at least, 
to Jeduthun, eleven to the sons of Korah, one to 
Ethan (Psalm 89), while many are of uncertain 
authorship. Moses is given by tradition as the author 
of Psalm 90, being the only contribution of which his 



98-99 Difficult Bible Questions 

authorship is reasonably certain. The Psalms cover 
a period of a thousand years. They were composed at 
different remote periods, by various poets ; David, the 
most prolific contributor, being indicated as the author 
of seventy-three Psalms in the Hebrew text and eleven 
in the Septuagint. 

98. What Figure Is Conveyed by the Words 

"Rachel Weeping for Her Children"? 

The passage in Matthew 2:18 relates to the Baby- 
lonian captivity. Rachel, the wife of Jacob, and 
mother of Joseph and Benjamin, is figuratively repre- 
sented as rising from the tomb and lamenting over 
the loss of her children. Ramah in Benjamin was a 
scene of pillage and massacre in Jeremiah's time (see 
Jer. 31 :i5), and hence is chosen by the prophet in his 
figurative scene of lamentation. 

99. What Was the Width of the Red Sea at the 

Point Where Israel Crossed? 

It is generally held by a majority of writers and 
travelers that the passage was made at Ras Atakah 
Point, about six miles south of Suez, and opposite the 
southern end of Jebel Atakah. At Ras Atakah, the 
land runs out in the form of a promontory for fully 
a mile into the sea beyond the regular shore line. 
Beyond this, there is a shoal for nearly a mile more, 
over which the water at low tide is usually about 
fourteen feet deep. Beyond this, and before the true 
channel or center is reached, there are two other com- 
parative shoals ; the channel itself is somewhere about 
fifty feet deep and three-quarters of a mile wide. There 
is another succession of shoals on the eastern shore. 



Old Testament Subjects 100-101 

The distance from shore to shore is about five and 
a half miles. 

100. Whence Came the Queen of Sheba? 

It is supposed by well-informed authorities that she 
came from Yemen, in Arabia Felix. In Matthew 
12 142 she is referred to as the "Queen of the South," 
who came from "the uttermost parts of the earth/' a 
term applied by the ancients to southern Arabia. Not 
improbably she was a lineal descendant of Abraham, 
by Keturah, whose grandson, Sheba, peopled that part 
of the then known world. The Arabic account of this 
queen gives her the name of Bilkis or Yelkamah, a 
monarch of the Himyerites ; but their account is prob- 
ably more legendary than accurate as to detail. 

101. What Problems Did the Queen of Sheba 

Put to Prove the Wisdom of Solomon? 

The Bible here gives us no clue but tradition has 
preserved some of the questions which she is said to 
have put to Solomon to test his wisdomi. These, we 
believe, are principally found in the Talmudical writ- 
ings. It is said she introduced a party of children all 
dressed alike, and asked the king to tell which were 
boys and which girls. King Solomon ordered vessels 
to be brought that the children might wash their 
hands. The girls rolled up their sleeves, but the boys 
plunged their hands into the water at once, and were 
easily detected by the king. The queen next ordered 
her attendants to set before Solomon a number of 
beautiful bouquets and asked him to indicate which 
were the real flowers and which the false. Solomon 
ordered the keeper of his gardens to bring in a hive 



102-103 Difficult Bible Questions 

of bees, and they almost instantly settled upon the 
natural flowers and began to extract the sweets from 
them, leaving the artificial flowers untouched. Other 
traditions illustrative of Solomon's wisdom are told 
by the ancient writers. 

102. What Was the Sin of Saul— 1. Sam. 13: 

13, 14? 

His chief sin was disobedience. Samuel, the recog- 
nized representative of God in the nation, had com- 
manded him to wait till he arrived in Gilgal, saying he 
would come in seven days. Saul did not wait till the 
end of the seventh day, thereby showing an impatient 
and disobedient spirit. God demands that men obey 
Him implicitly. "To obey is better than sacrifice/' 
Samuel said to Saul on another occasion of his dis- 
obedience. Probably, also, Saul had no right to con- 
duct the ritual of sacrifice. As to Samuel's doing so, 
he may simply have ordered it done, directing Eleazar 
the priest to conduct the ceremony; or his office of 
prophet may have given him the authority to act also 
as priest. Furthermore, though not a descendant of 
Aaron, he belonged to the priestly tribe of Levi. 

103. Why Were "Shepherds" an Abomination 

to the Egyptians? 

The reason of the Egyptian hatred of the shepherds 
is a historic one. The Hyksos or Shepherd Kings, hun- 
dreds of years before Joseph's time, had invaded and 
conquered Lower Egypt and ruled the Delta, although 
they never occupied the whole country. They came 
from the East and were probably Arabians, and are 
represented as having been a cruel and arrogant race, 



Old Testament Subjects 104 

who subjected the Egyptians to great hardships. (See 
Gen. 46:34.) They were finally driven out of the 
country by a coalition of forces under several kings. 
They were probably called Shepherds because of the 
simplicity of their life, which was largely pastoral and 
semi-barbaric. Manetho, the Egyptian historian, says 
that they were the builders of Jerusalem, but his refer- 
ence is probably to the Canaanites rather than the 
Jews. Some writers suggest that they were the pro- 
genitors of the Bedouins, and that the Amalekites, 
Midianites, and other hostile nations who opposed the 
Israelites after the Exodus were also descended from 
the stock of the expelled Shepherds. It is not improb- 
able that the Philistines may also have been a branch 
of the same Shepherd family. 

104. Who Were the Sidonians? 

These people were descendants of Sidoa, a son of 
Canaan, and were formerly a part of the Phoenician 
nation (Matt. 15 :2i, 22\ Mark 7:24, 26). They dwelt 
on the sea-coast in the cities of Zidon and Zarephath 
(Josh. 11 :8; I Kin. 17:9; Luke 4:26), and were gov- 
erned by kings. In character they were careless, idol- 
atrous, superstitious, wicked and unpenitent (Judg. 
18:7; I Kin. 11 :5; Jer. 27:3-9; Matt. 11 :2i, 22). Their 
business was commerce and of course they were skill- 
ful sailors (Is. 23:2; Eze. 27:8). They supplied the 
Jews with timber, who in turn supplied them with 
provisions (I Chron. 22:4; Acts 12:20; Eze. 27:17). 
Although they were hostile and oppressive to Gocf s 
people, Solomon and Abijah intermarried with them, 
and Israel followed the Sidonian idolatry (Judg. 10:12; 
Eze. 28:22-24; I Kin. 11 :i, 16:31). 



105-106 Difficult Bible Questions 

105. What Is Known of Sodom Outside the 

Bible? 

Comparatively little. Sodom was a small but popu- 
lous country, and according to Josephus (Antiquities, 
chapter 9, book I) was rich and flourishing, with five 
kings controlling its affairs and with a certain degree 
of ancient civilization. Doubtless they were idolaters, 
but they had an opportunity, through the presence of 
Lot and his household, of knowing the true God. In 
chapter 11, book I of the Antiquities the historian tells 
of their great wealth and pride, their injustice toward 
men, their impiety and peculiar vices. So persistent 
were they in wickedness that the overthrow of their 
chief city and the destruction of the people came upon 
them as a punishment. 

106. Can Any Spiritual Lesson Be Drawn from 

Solomon's Song? 

Undoubtedly, as from every other part of the Bible. 
The difficulties in regard to it arise from the various 
views as to its plan and purpose. No less than sixteen of 
these have been advanced by expositors. Three only, 
however, have commended themselves to any large 
number of Bible students. One of them regards it as 
the yearning of God's people, when separated from the 
Temple and the ordinances of the Jewish service. A 
second view is that it represents, under the image of 
an intense love, the relation of Christ and his people. 
Paul uses the same symbol in Eph. 5 122-23. This 
was evidently the view taken by the men who put the 
headings to the chapters in the King James Version 
of the Bible, which headings have been discarded in 
the Revised Version. The third view is the literal, 



Old Testament Subjects 107-108 

which is taken by modern scholars and is growing in 
favor. It is that the poem celebrates the trials and 
triumph of a country maiden, who when carried away 
from her humble home and her rustic lover to become 
an inmate of the king's harem, rejects with scorn the 
magnificence and luxury offered her and remains 
faithful to her lover, with whom she returns. The 
lesson is obvious. It is the lesson of a fidelity to truth 
and righteousness which no offer of wealth and luxury 
can disturb. 

107. Where Was the Twelfth Tribe at the Time 
of the Jewish Kings? 

Rehoboam reigned over one and Jeroboam over 
ten. (I Kings n :3i-35, 12 :2i.) The tribe of Levi was 
not counted because it had no land possessions (Num. 
18:20-24), except cities for dwellings, with their out- 
lying fields for pasturage (Num. 35:1-8). The tribe 
of Joseph was divided into two parts, Ephraim and 
Manasseh, which are usually spoken of as two distinct 
tribes. But in this division Joseph seems to have been 
counted as but one tribe, making Jeroboam's ten. Al- 
though Rehoboam at first retained only Judah, most 
of the tribe of Benjamin soon joined his kingdom. 
Simeon and Dan also became part of the kingdom of 
Judah. 

10& What Was the Real Sin of Uzzah? 

The sin of Uzzah (I Chron. 13 :g, 10) and its sudden 
punishment have been a subject of much discussion. 
None but priests of Aaron's family (that is, of the 
priest's household) were permitted to touch the Ark. 
Uzzah was of a Levitical family. In the house of his 



109 Difficult Bible Questions 

father, Ablnadab, the Ark had rested for twenty years. 
When Uzzah put forth his hand to prevent the Ark 
from falling he was smitten, Josephus explains, be- 
cause he touched it, "not being a priest." Others, 
however, have taken the view that Uzzah's sin was 
not that of laying unordained and unconsecrated hands 
upon the Ark in a moment of excitement, but rather 
— if the real reason lay in this direction at all — because 
he recklessly and sacrilegiously appropriated to himself 
powers and privileges which he well knew belonged 
to higher persons. One commentator writes: "The 
whole proceeding was disorderly and contrary to the 
distinct and significant regulations of the law which 
prescribed that the Ark should be carried on the 
shoulders of the Levites (Ex. 25:14), whereas it was 
here conveyed in a cart drawn by oxen. Besides, it 
should have been covered. There seems to have been 
no priest in charge, and it would appear that the sacred 
vessel was brought forth naked to the common gaze." 
Uzzah as a Levite should have observed and remedied 
these things, but his growing familiarity with the 
mysteries of the Jewish religion had made him careless, 
and the punishment came upon him at a time when it 
would most effectually check the evils among the peo- 
ple. That it had this effect is evident from I Chron. 
25:2-13. 

109. Did the Witch at Endor Really Raise the 
Spirit of Samuel? 

Much has been written on the question whether, in 
the scene at Endor, an imposture or a real apparition 
appeared. Eustathius and a majority of the early 
Christian fathers held the former opinion, and repre- 



Old Testament Subjects 110 

sent it as a deception of the evil one ; Origen held the 
latter view. It should be remembered that Saul, at 
the time was forsaken of God and that, rendered des- 
perate by his sins, he had recourse to this woman, who 
in the Hebrew writings is described as "a mistress of 
Ob" or a necromancist (not a "witch") who obtained 
a living by pretending to have intercourse with spirits, 
while the Greek writers describe her as a ventriloquist. 
Josephus, the Jewish historian, describes her as one 
of a class of fortune-tellers who had been banished by 
the king. Saul's highly wrought nervous condition at 
the time, combined with the fact that he himself saw 
no vision or spirit, but simply listened to and accepted 
the necromancer's description of an aged man of god- 
like appearance, should be taken into consideration, 
and these facts doubtless influenced the early fathers 
in reaching the conclusion that the wretched king had 
been the victim of an imposition. 

110. What Is the Real Meaning of the Visions 
Described by Zechariah? 

The chapters containing the visions are chiefly con- 
cerned with the hope founded on the approaching end 
of the seventy years, which, as Jeremiah predicted, 
would be the period of the captivity in Babylon. These 
are the meaning of the visions, according to some in- 
terpreters: The flying roll, a huge book with wings, 
contained the record of sin and curse. The prophet 
sees it flying from the Holy Land, destroying on its 
way the houses of the thieves and perjurers. The 
woman in the ephah (5:5-11) represents the principle 
of evil and of temptation. She, too, like sin and the 
curse, must be removed from the land, and she is 



110 Difficult Bible Questions 

carried away to the land of Shinar, which the Jews 
regarded as the fit abode of wicked things. The char- 
iots of the winds (6:1-8) are God's messengers com- 
missioned to avenge Israel. The black horses go north, 
that is to punish Persia; the dappled, south, that is 
against Egypt; and the white, west, that is against 
Greece, then becoming formidable. The horses of the 
fourth chariot have a general commission for any part 
of the world in which enmity to Israel might develop. 



111-112 



NEW TESTAMENT PERSONS 
AND THINGS 



111. How Was the Apostles' Creed Formulated ? 

t According to one ancient writer who quotes from 
tradition, it was Peter who contributed the first sen- 
tence — "I believe in God the Father Almighty" ; John 
added — "Maker of heaven and earth" ; James — "And 
in Jesus Christ, his only Son our Lord"; Andrew — 
"Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the 
Virgin Mary"; Philip — "Suffered under Pontius Pi- 
late; was crucified dead and buried"; Thomas — "He 
descended into hell ; the third day he rose again from 
the dead"; Bartholomew — "He ascended into heaven 
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Al- 
mighty"; Matthew — "From whence he shall come to 
judge the quick and the dead." The other clauses were 
contributed by James (son of Alpheus), Simon Ze- 
lotes, Jude and Matthias. It should be remembered, 
however, that neither Luke nor any ecclesiastical writ- 
er before the fifth century makes mention of an assem- 
bly of the apostles to formulate a creed, and the early 
fathers never claimed that the apostles framed it. Its 
date and the circumstances of its origin are uncertain. 

112. Did John Write the Last Chapter of His 

Gospel ? 

We know that it has been asserted by some critics 
that this chapter must have been added by another 



113 Difficult Bible Questions 

hand, because the evangelist concluded his work in the 
previous chapter. This, however, is not accepted by 
sound scholarship, for the reason that it is not unusual 
in the New Testament w r ritings and in other good 
books, for authors to insert supplementary matter, to 
which class the chapter in question clearly belongs. 
There is no evidence that John's Gospel was ever 
known in the early Church without this chapter. John, 
it is true, refers to himself in the third person ; but he 
did so also in chapter 19:35 in practically the same 
terms as in 21 124. The best commentators agree as 
to the genuineness on prima facie evidence. 

113, What Were the Locusts That Became the 
Food of John the Baptist? 

Some writers think it may have been the common 
locust or green grasshopper, which, when prepared and 
dried, tastes somewhat like a shrimp. Many ancient 
authors mention them as food. Diodorus Siculus refers 
to a people of Ethiopia, who were called acridophaghi, 
or locust eaters. Porphryius says that whole armies 
have been saved from starvation by eating locusts. 
Aristotle and Aristophanes assert that they were rel- 
ished by the Greeks, and Layard, the discoverer, found 
evidence that they were eaten in a preserved state by 
the Assyrians. Later commentators, however have 
conjectured that the "locust" mentioned in Mark's 
Gospel as being the food of John the Baptist, was 
the carob, the fruit of a tree of the locust family, which 
is a sort of sweetish bean, in pods, much used by the 
poorer classes. 



Old Testament Subjects 114-115 

114. What Is Known of Joints Birth and Early 

Training ? 

He was of the priestly race by both parents, his 
father, Zacharias, being a priest of the course of 
Abijah, and Elisabeth a descendant of Aaron. Of the 
first thirty years of his life, the only history we have 
is contained in a single verse, Luke i :8o. But it is a 
reasonable presumption that he received the Jewish 
ecclesiastical training of that period. He was the 
chosen forerunner of the Messiah (Luke i 76). Dwell- 
ing alone in the desert region westward of the Dead 
Sea, he prepared himself for his work by discipline 
and constant prayer. One of his instructors, Banus 
(mentioned by Josephus, the Jew T ish historian), tells 
how he lived with John in the desert, eating the sparse 
food and bathing frequently by day and night. At last 
(about A. D. 25) John came forth from his hermit-like 
seclusion in the wild mountainous tract in Judea lying 
beyond the desert and the Dead Sea, and took up the 
work of his real office, preaching repentance and bap- 
tism, and attracting great multitudes. 

115. Was John the Baptist Sentenced to Death 

Before the Dance of Salome? 

While there is no record to prove it, the presumption 
is that Herod, in his mind, had already condemned John 
on political grounds as one whose existence endangered 
his position and authority, but his awakened con- 
science and the fear inspired by John's teachings 
restrained him. He had kept John in the prison of 
Machaerus nearly a year when the Salome incident 
occurred, which gave Herodias her opportunity to be 
revenged upon the Baptist, who had rebuked both her 



116-117 Difficult Bible Questions 

and Herod for their sinful relations. It cannot be 
asserted that Herod would have executed John had 
not the king been caught by his pledge to Salome. On 
the contrary Mark 6 126 tells us that he "was exceeding 
sorrowful." 

116. When Did John the Baptist Die? 

The date is somewhat difficult to determine with any 
degree of reliability. The first Passover of Jesus' 
ministry is believed to have occurred in A. D. 27. His 
baptism at John's hands took place immediately before 
that time. John's imprisonment in the tower of 
Machserus in all probability began in A. D. 27 and in 
the first half of that year, but Herod's unwillingness 
to put him to death may have delayed the climax until 
the beginning of A. D. 28. Tradition says he was buried 
in Samaria. 

117. Was John the Baptist Elijah? 

The statement in the affirmative is m>ade a number 
of times in the New Testament. (See Matt. 11:14, 
17 no-12 ; Mark 9 :i2, 13. See also Mai. 4 15.) But some 
of the ablest commentators hold that we must interpret 
the connection figuratively, and that there is no reason 
for believing that this means any more than that he was 
the new Elijah of his time, a rugged prophet, like 
Elijah in temperament, habits and speech, unafraid 
even of kings. He himself said distinctly that he was 
not Elijah (John 1:21). The sense in which the 
expression was used is made clear in Luke 1 117: "He 
shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah." 
In the narrative of Elijah's appearance at the trans- 
figuration there is no suggestion that he was John the 



New Testament Subjects 118-120 

Baptist, whom all the men present had known and 
seen, and who had only recently died. One of the 
things that distinguishes the philosophy of the Bible 
from that of uninspired teachings is that it never con- 
fuses or obscures personal identity. Each soul has a 
distinct personality, which can never be merged or 
changed into another. 

118. John the Baptist's Place in Prophecy. 

"Who was the last prophet of the old dispensation?" 
John the Baptist came as the forerunner of Christ, and 
so may be considered the last prophet of the old dis- 
pensation. Christ said: "All the prophets and the 
law prophesied until John" (Matt. II :I3). Otherwise, 
if you regard him as belonging to an intermediate dis- 
pensation, the last would be the prophet called Malachi, 
the writer of the last book in the Old Testament. It is 
not certain that Malachi was his name, as the word 
may be translated, "My messenger." 

119. Why Was Twelve the Number of the 

Apostles? 

All of the twelve disciples were Jews. Their num- 
ber was doubtless fixed upon after the analogy of the 
twelve tribes. They were mostly Galileans, taken from 
the common people, and some at least had been dis- 
ciples of John the Baptist. (See Matt. 12:25; John 
1:35; Matt. 19:28.) 

120. Have We a Historical Record of the Deaths 

of the Apostles? 

The records of their end are found in traditions pre- 
served by the early Church. Matthew was martyred 



121-122 Difficult Bible Questions 

in Ethiopia; Mark in Alexandria, Egypt; Luke was 
hanged on an olive tree in Greece ; John, after many 
perils, died a natural death in Ephesus; Peter was 
crucified in Rome, head downwards; James the Great 
beheaded at Jerusalem ; James the Less beaten to death 
with a fuller's club in the temple grounds; Philip 
hanged at Hieropolis ; Bartholomew flayed alive ; 
Thomas slain with a lance at Coromandel ; Jude killed 
with arrows ; Simeon crucified in Persia ; Andrew cru- 
cified ; Matthias stoned and beheaded ; Barnabas stoned 
to death by Jews at Salamis ; Paul beheaded at Rome 
under Nero. 

121. If Paul Had Not Expected a Resurrection 

Would He Have Lived a Self-indulgent 
Life? 

No, he was not that kind of man. In the passage 
in I Cor. 15:32 he is considering the attitude of an 
opponent, and is stating such an argument as might 
be made by one who believed there was no life beyond 
the grave. In effect he says : "A man who does not 
believe in immortality might naturally say, in consid- 
ering such a life as mine, that it is folly. Instead of 
fighting with beasts as I did at Ephesus, and enduring 
all kinds of hardship and persecution, it would be bet- 
ter for me if I simply enjoyed the good things of life. 
Such a man could never be persuaded to become a 
Christian, if there was no prospect of a future life. 

122. Is It Known Who Were Paul's Parents? 

The name of Paul's parents are not given in the 
Scriptures. The only mention of his blood relations 
is in Acts 23:16 and Rom. 16:7, 11, but whether 



New Testament Subjects 123-124 

Andronicus, Junia and Herodion were really relatives 
or simply friends is an open question. 

123. What Are the Dates of the Pauline 

Epistles ? 

According to the best authorities the epistles of Paul 
were written at about the following times : 

Romans 58 A. D. at Corinth. 

I Corinthians 57 A. D. at Ephesus. 

II Corinthians 58 A. D. at Philippi. 

I Thessalonians 52 A. D. at Corinth. 

II Thessalonians .... 52 or 53 A. D. at Corinth. 

Philippians 61 A. D. at Rome. 

Colossians 63 A. D. at Rome. 

Ephesians 63 A. D. at Rome. 

Galatians 58 A. D. at Corinth. 

Philemon 63 A. D. at Rome. 

I Timothy 65 A. D. in Macedonia. 

II Timothy 6j A. D. in Rome. 

Titus 66 A. D. in Macedonia. 

124. What Do We Know of Paul's Personal 

Appearance? 

All we know of it, from his own writings, is found 
in II Cor. 10:10, which indicates that he did not 
possess the advantage of a distinguished or imposing 
presence. His stature was somewhat diminutive, his 
eyesight weak (see Acts 23:5 and Gal. 4:15) nor did 
he regard his address as impressive. Much of this 
personal criticism, however, may have been the out- 
come of the apostle's desire to avoid magnifying him- 
self or his own talents. A fourth century tablet repre- 
sents him as venerable-looking and dignified, with a 



125 Difficult Bible Questions 

high, bald forehead, full-bearded, and with features 
indicating force of character. One ancient writer says 
Paul's nose was strongly aquiline. All the early 
pictures and mosaics, as well as some of the early 
writers (among them Malalus and Nicephorus) agree 
in describing the apostle as of short stature, with long 
face, prominent eyebrows, clear complexion and a 
winning expression, the whole aspect being that of 
power and dignity. The oldest known portrait is the 
Roman panel of the fourth century, already referred 
to above. 

125. What Was the Cause of the Dispute Be- 
tween Peter and Paul at Antioch? 

"When Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him 
to the face, because he was to be blamed," wrote Paul 
in Gal. 2:11. In view of this statement of Paul, some 
have questioned whether we may regard both Paul 
and Peter as having been acting under inspiration. 
The question of inspiration is not involved in the 
incident that took place at Antioch, when Paul rebuked 
Peter for his inconsistency. It is simply a question of 
human weakness. While under the influence of cer- 
tain High Church Jewish-Christians, who came from 
James, Peter withdrew and separated himself from) 
the Antioch Christians, "fearing them of the circum- 
cision." The result was that Barnabas, and doubtless 
many others, were affected by his example, which be- 
came a scandal in the community. To save the Church 
from an apostasy, Paul took Peter to task for his con- 
duct and rebuked him openly, as his conduct was an 
attack on Gospel liberty. The writings of Paul and 
Peter that have found their way into the New Testa- 



New Testament Subjects 126-127 

ment Canon are, beyond doubt, inspired, but to say 
that every word they uttered during their Christian 
lives was inspired is what we do not believe. Paul 
and Peter had human weaknesses and limitations, like 
other men. But when they wrote authoritatively under 
the guidance of the Holy Ghost, they were kept free 
from errors and mistakes, and in this way were 
inspired. 

126. Was Paul Familiar with the Scriptures? 

It is made clear in Acts 27 that Paul was familiar 
with "all the learning of the Greeks." Tarsus, his 
native city, was a famous seat of learning and philo- 
sophical research, and he probably had the advantage 
of training in its schools. The son of a Pharisee and 
trained from boyhood to the pursuits of a doctor of 
Jewish law, he presumably was instructed in the ele- 
ments of Rabbinical lore, including of course the 
Jewish Scriptures. These are the inferences of those 
writers who have studied his life career. This could 
not apply to the New Testament writings as we now 
know them, for they were only in the making, and 
must have been very incomplete ; but it is a fair pre- 
sumption that in his later career, as an apostle, he was 
not ignorant of such writings as may then have been 
in existence, dealing with the events of Jesus' life and 
ministry. There was no New Testament, in the mod- 
ern meaning of the term, in Paul's day, and could 
not have been, for obvious reasons. 

127. What Part Did Paul Have in the Stoning 

of Stephen? 

Paul, at the time of Stephen's martyrdom, was more 
than a mere spectator; he was an active assistant. 



128 Difficult Bible Questions 

There is nothing in the Scripture to show that before 
his miraculous conversion, he had shown or expressed 
regret at his participation in Stephen's death. On the 
contrary, he had become, and was, up to the moment 
when he was stricken down, one of the bitterest and 
most relentless persecutors of the Christians. (See Acts 
26:10, 12.) What he may have thought, in his own 
heart at times, of his share in the tragedy, or what 
influence it may have had upon him, can only be a 
matter of surmise. There was nothing to outwardly 
reveal that he brooded over it or that he repented at 
all, before his own transformation. 

128. Was Paul Ever Married? 

There is no evidence in the New Testament to show 
that he was ever married, and commentators have held 
that various passages in which he urges celibacy, show 
him to have remained single by choice. But this is 
only an inference. Others take the opposite view, 
pointing out that at the age of thirty, he was a member 
of the Sanhedrin (Acts 26:10) ; as such he "gave his 
vote" against the followers of Jesus. Being the 
youngest of the judges, he was appointed "judicial 
witness" of the execution of Stephen. According to 
Maimonides, and the Jerusalem Gemara, it was re- 
quired of all who were to be made members of 
that Council that they should be married, and fa- 
thers of families, because such were supposed to 
be more inclined to merciful judgment. (See Life 
of St. Paul, by Conybeare and Howson, volume 1, 
chapter 2.) 



New Testament Subjects 129-131 

129. What Were the Dates of Paul's Mission- 

ary Journeys? 

Paul's introduction by the sacred historian (when he 
was a witness of Stephen's martyrdom), is supposed 
to have been about A. D. 36. At that time he was 
probably between thirty and forty years of age. His 
conversion took place A. D. 37. He left Damascus 
A. D. 37. First missionary journey undertaken A. D. 
44; his second, three years later, and his third, four 
years after the second. 

130. When Did Paul Go to Rome and How Long 

Did He Stay? 

According to the best available information, the 
shipwreck occurred in the year 56 A. D., and late in 
the autumn of that year Paul reached Rome as a 
prisoner. The length of his stay is uncertain. Acts 
28 130 says two years, and the author probably knew. 
It is probable that Paul was then set at liberty and 
made another preaching tour, going farther west than 
before. He was afterwards again seized and taken 
back to Rome. How long a time elapsed between his 
second arrival and his execution there no one knows. 

131. Did Paul Baptize? 

He answers this question himself (I Cor. 1:17). 
He implies that he had something better to do. Christ 
sent him not to baptize but to preach the Gospel. The 
value of baptism in the case of the Corinthian converts 
was that it was a public profession of their faith — it 
placed them on record. This result would be attained 
whoever administered the rite, and, therefore, Paul 
relegated the duty to some other Christian. After he 



132-133 Difficult Bible Questions 

left, the Corinthians began to think there was some 
special significance about it, and for this Paul reproves 
them. 

132. Did Peter Go to Rome? 

There is nothing in the book of Romans to indicate 
Peter's presence in Rome at any time, but that is 
merely negative evidence. If he ever visited Rome, 
it was probably during the last year of his life, 
although Eusebius in the Chronicon says he visited it 
in A. D. 42. Jerome also mentions Peter's visit to 
Rome. Catholic writers assert that he was there for 
a number of years. There is no evidence of the fact in 
the New Testament books. It is generally accepted, 
however, that he was in Rome in his last year when 
he became a martyr as our Lord predicted (John 
21:18, 19). Dionysus of Corinth writes that Peter 
and Paul suffered martyrdom in Italy together. 
Irenseus confirms his presence in Rome. Caius, 
Origen, Tertullian and others bear similar testi- 
mony. 

133. Was Peter Converted Before His Denial 

of Christ? 

Peter was a man of resolute character, bold and 
decisive. He was easily the leader of the twelve. 
Honest-hearted and warmly attached to Christ, he 
believed himself immovably loyal; yet in the hour of 
temptation he proved unstable and weak. Jesus knew 
his heart and warned him against over-confidence in 
his own loyalty. "I have been praying for thee," he 
said, "that thy faith fail not." He needed this divine 
strengthening. His faith had failed once before in a 



New Testament Subjects 134 

crisis (see Matt. 14:29), and what he needed to con- 
firm him now was the "power from on high" which 
would come later. The tempter was to sift all the 
disciples, and Jesus foresaw Peter's weakness, but he 
was preserved from falling by this special intercession. 
His case shows, perhaps more completely than any 
other in the New Testament, the weakness of the 
natural and the strength of the spiritual man. Even 
at the moment of his denial of Christ, it needed but a 
glance from the eye of his Lord to make him instantly 
repentant. After the enduement with the Holy Ghost, 
he stood forth as the leader of the apostles, faithful 
unto death. 

134. What Was Paul's "Thorn in the Flesh"? 

It referred to some bodily affliction affecting him 
individually and physically, but not his work as an 
apostle. In Gal. 4:13, 14 he refers to it as an "infirm- 
ity of my flesh" — some form of bodily sickness which 
had detained him among the Galatians. It was proba- 
bly something that caused him acute pain, and also 
some degree of shame, since it "buffeted" him (I 
Pet. 2:20). There have been many conjectures as to 
its real character. Some have imagined it to be blasphe- 
mous thoughts, and others, remorse for his former 
life; but the most probable view is that it was an 
affliction which caused him physical annoyance, possi- 
bly a disorder of the eyes, or some nervous ailment. 
At all events, we are assured that it was so persistent 
and recurrent that he speaks of it in terms of apology 
and mortification. 



135-136 Difficult Bible Questions 

135. For What Purpose Was Judas Chosen as 

a Disciple? 

He was attracted, as the others were, by the preach- 
ing of the Baptist or by his own Messianic hopes. It 
can be imagined, however, that baser motives may 
have mingled with his faith and zeal. He must have 
possessed some qualifications, probably plausibility 
being one, and he may even have excelled the rest of 
the twelve in business ability. Again, he may have 
joined the twelve in all sincerity, and yielded to temp- 
tation only when he found the handling of the money 
made him covetous. It was evident that Jesus knew 
from the beginning what Judas would do (John 6:64). 
Volumes have been written in the futile effort to 
explain why Judas was chosen. 

136. In What Sense Was Judas a Devil? 

Little is known of the life of Judas before his ap- 
pearance among the apostles. He was probably drawn 
by the Baptist's preaching, or by his own ambitious 
hopes of the coming of a Messianic kingdom, in which 
he might play an important and lucrative part. He 
-seems to have declared himself a disciple of Jesus, as 
the others did, and as he was intrusted with the 
finances of the little company, we may judge that he 
enjoyed a measure of confidence, although this seems 
to have been undeserved. (See John 12:6.) That 
Jesus himself knew the heart of Judas from the begin- 
ning is made clear from the text. (See also John 
6:64-71.) Our Lord knew his inmost thoughts. He 
knew Judas to be deceitful and treacherous. He knew 
of his criminal confidences with the priests, which 
culminated in the betrayal. (See John 18:3-5.) The 



New Testament Subjects 137-138 

act of betrayal was not the outcome of a sudden im- 
pulse at the Last Supper, but was the closing scene in 
a long career of deceit and treachery. Judas was 
probably ambitious, and like several other apostles 
believed that Jesus would set up an earthly kingdom in 
which he himself might have an influential part. Of 
his early history before his name appears in the list 
of the apostles, nothing is known. The name "Iscariot" 
is variously explained, some writers holding that he 
was so called because he belonged to Kerioth in the 
tribe of Judah. 

137. How Did Judas Die? 

Several explanations of the apparent discrepancy 
between Matt. 27:3-10 and Acts 1:18, 19 have been 
offered. The first, with relation to the death of Judas, 
is that the word translated as "hanged" in Matt. 27 :5 
is capable of a different interpretation, i. e. y death by 
a sudden spasm of suffocation, which might have been 
accompanied by a fall before the spasm spent itself. 
Another suggestion, which has been made by some 
eminent scholars, is that the work of suicide was but 
half accomplished when, the halter parting, Judas 
fell with the result stated in Acts 1 :i8. 

138. Was It Repentance or Remorse That Drove 

Judas to Suicide? 

All we know is what the Scripture tells us. It may 
have been remorse, or chagrin over the failure of his 
plans, but it could hardly have been repentance. It 
was suggested by DeQuincey, with some plausibility, 
that in betraying Christ, he was seeking to precipitate 
a crisis, out of which he expected to see Christ emerge 



139 Difficult Bible Questions 

triumphant. He thought Christ would use his mirac- 
ulous power to save himself, and when in danger of 
death, would declare himself King, and would set up 
his kingdom, in which the disciples would hold high 
office. When he found that Christ intended to submit, 
he perceived that his scheme to force his hand had 
failed, and he was overwhelmed by the catastrophe he 
had precipitated. The suggestion is not sustained by 
the conception we gain of him in the Gospels, but it 
is possible to imagine an ambitious and avaricious 
man acting in that way; if, as is possible, he was 
impatient with Christ, who had powers so great and 
yet was so slow to use them to advance his own inter- 
ests and those of the men who had left all to follow 
him, he may have tried this scheme. The suggestion, 
however, is pure conjecture. No one has been able 
to analyze satisfactorily the character of Judas. 

139. Were the Apostles Converted Before the 
Day of Pentecost? 

Jesus had said, many things to and about His dis- 
ciples before his death,^ which indicated that they were 
converted men: "Rejoice, because your names are 
written in heaven," Luke 10:20; "Now ye are clean 
through the word that I have spoken unto you," John 
15:3; "Ye know him" (the Spirit of truth), "for he 
dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." In the last 
verse he distinguishes them from "the world." The 
world, he said, cannot receive the Spirit; but the 
Spirit was already with the disciples, and was to come 
into their hearts in greater fullness, as he did on the 
day of Pentecost. In the high-priestly prayer Jesus 
said : "I pray not for the world, but for them which 



New Testament Subjects 140 

thou hast given me; for they are thine;" 'They are 
not of the world, even as I am not of the world;" 
"Thine they were, and thou gavest them me ; and they 
have kept thy word," John 17:9, 14, 16, 6. Although 
Peter was a converted man, he fell into sin and denied 
his Master. It is the common experience of justified 
Christians that, while they do not habitually sin, they 
slip occasionally into transgression. But after the 
fullness of the Spirit had been received on the day of 
Pentecost, Peter and the other apostles stood firm. 
This also has been the experience of many Christians 
since the apostles' time, who have found, in a larger 
blessing, sanctifying and keeping grace. Jacob's ex- 
perience was the same. Before his blessing at Jabbok, 
he had met God at Bethel and received the promise: 
"I will not leave thee" (Gen. 28:15) ; God had spoken 
to him again, while he dwelt with Laban (Gen. 31 13- 
11) ; the angels of God met him at Mahanaim (Gen. 
32:2). But after the experience at Jabbok, or Peniel, 
he lived to the end of his days a purer, higher spiritual 
life. 

140. Was the Gift of Tongues Retained by the 
Apostles Until Their Death? 

The endowment of the "gift of tongues" was ap- 
parently continued to the Christians during the apos- 
tolic age. Jesus before his ascension breathed upon his 
disciples and said. "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." Fifty 
days after the crucifixion, the disciples received special 
power, when the Holy Ghost came upon them. It was 
to be a sign — to belong to only a few — the apostles 
and evangelists — and with this gift they went forth 
to preach to the nations. Later, Paul wrote that he 



141-142 Difficult Bible Questions 

"spake with tongues more than all." In I Cor. 13 :8, 
however, we see that "tongues'' were already ceasing, 
as belonging to the past. Many times since then the 
question has arisen whether the gift of tongues was 
continued to succeeding generations. The attitude of 
the early Church, neither to quench nor forbid them 
(see I Thess. 5:19), yet not to invite or excite them, 
was a safe one. If they were of God, the fact would 
make itself apparent; if they were simply hysterical 
jargon, they would quickly subside. Throughout 
Church history, there were many spurious instances. 
Irenaeus wrote of some in his time who spoke with 
tongues, but Eusebius hardly referred to the subject, 
and Chrysostom mentions it only to discourage what 
he considered as an ecstatic indulgence of doubtful 
spiritual profit. 

141. Were Any of the Disciples Married? 

Very little is known regarding the domestic rela- 
tions of the apostles beyond what is disclosed in the 
Gospels. Matt. 8:15 clearly implies that Peter was 
married. Bartholomew is said by tradition to have 
been the bridegroom at the wedding at Cana, and 
Philip is mentioned by Clement of Alexandria as hav- 
ing had a wife and children. Nothing definite can be 
asserted concerning the others, although they are 
generally assumed to have been unmarried. 

142. Who Were the Essenes? 

A small community of Jews in the time of Christ, 
who led a pastoral life and did not marry. They held 
their goods and took their meals in common, strictly 
observed the Sabbath, prayed before sunrise with their 



New Testament Subjects 143-146 

faces to the East, bathed daily in cold water, never 
swore, sacrificed no animals, and believed in immor- 
tality without a resurrection of the body. 

143, Who Were the Gentiles? 

Gentiles, which means simply "peoples," was a term 
applied indiscriminately by the Jews to all other nations 
than themselves. After a time it acquired a hostile 
meaning, as the Jews gradually drew themselves apart 
as a "holy nation." The term is used of "Galilee of 
the Gentiles," where some five nations other than the 
Jews were represented; the "Court of the Gentiles" 
outside the Temple area; the "isles of the Gentiles," 
etc. 

144. Who Were the Pharisees? 

The Pharisees were a Jewish sect deriving their 
name from a word which means "separate" or "dis- 
tinct." They were disciples of the Jewish sages, who 
held themselves aloof and claimed to keep rigidly the 
Mosaic laws of purity. They had many religious 
observances and believed in a future life of rewards 
and punishments. 

145, Who Were the Sadducees? 

The Sadducees were a sect of free-thinkers, differ- 
ing greatly from the Pharisees on many points. They 
rejected the oral law and the prophets and only ac- 
cepted the Pentateuch, and Josephus says they denied 
the resurrection from the dead. 

146. Who Were the Herodians? 

The Herodians were a class of Jews in the time of 
Christ, who were partisans of Herod, either of a 



147 Difficult Bible Questions 

political or religious sort, or both. It appears that 
when the ecclesiastical authorities of Judea held a 
council against the Saviour, they associated with them- 
selves the Herodians, and sent an embassy to Jesus 
designing to trap him in his speech. As tetrarch of 
Galilee, Herod Antipas was the ruler of the province 
which was Jesus' home, and the Jews doubtless argued 
that Herod would be pleased if they could convict 
Jesus of being a rival claimant to the crown. The 
Pharisees were a Jewish sect who held rigidly aloof 
from other sects, claimed to be free from every kind 
of impurity and united to keep the Mosaic laws, to 
which they gave the closest study. They were fre- 
quently denounced by our Saviour for their self-right- 
eousness and their assumption of superior piety. The 
Sadducees were another sect, originally a religious 
body, but which had developed into a body of free- 
thinkers. They rejected the oral law and the prophets, 
but believed in the Pentateuch ; they denied the resur- 
rection and they held different views from other Jews 
on various other important points while claiming to be 
the most aristocratic and conservative of all the bodies. 

147. What Is Known of the Early Life of the 
Author of the Epistle of James? 

Nothing authoritative. He was probably brought up 
with Jesus and the other children in the Nazareth 
home. It is believed that he did not become a follower 
of Christ until after the resurrection. Christ seems 
to have appeared specially to him, and as Paul men- 
tions the fact (I Cor. 15:7) we may presume it was 
generally known, though it is not related in any of 
the Gospels. James was a strict Jew before becom- 



New Testament Subjects 148-150 

ing a Christian, and was highly esteemed among the 
Jews for his piety. It looks as though he never quite 
shook off his Jewish ideas (Gal. 2:12), and his epistle 
shows that he could not cordially endorse Paul's way 
of stating the Gospel. 

148. Was It a Whale That Swallowed Jonah? 

Nowhere in the book of Jonah are we told that the 
fish that swallowed Jonah was a whale. In Matt. 
12 140 the word "whale" is used, but the revised ver- 
sion gives "sea monster" in the margin. There is 
absolute proof that sea monsters large enough to swal- 
low a man have been found in the Mediterranean and 
other seas. 

149. Who Were the Karaites, or Readers? 

They were a small remnant of the Sadducees, "the 
Protestants of Judaism/' formed into a sect by Anan- 
ben-Daniel in the eighth century. They rejected the 
rabbinical traditions and the Talmud, and accepted the 
Scriptures alone. The origin of their name is uncer- 
tain. Some of the sect exist in the Crimea, Poland 
and Turkey. 

150. How Long Did Lazarus Live After Being 

Raised from the Dead? 

There are no authoritative data on the subject. An 
old tradition, mentioned by Epiphanius, says that 
Lazarus was thirty years old when restored from death 
and that he lived thirty years thereafter. Still another 
tradition declares that he traveled to Southern Europe, 
accompanied by Mary and Martha, and preached the 
Gospel in Marseilles. 



151-153 Difficult Bible Questions 

151. Who Was Lydia? 

She is mentioned in Acts 16:15 and was a resident 
of Thyatira, a city celebrated for its purple dyes. She 
seems to have been a business woman, engaged in the 
sale of dyed goods, and she evidently had an extensive 
establishment, as she was able to accommodate the 
missionary party. She was a proselyte to the Jewish 
faith, but became a believer under Paul's ministry. 

152. Was Mary, the Mother of Jesus, of the Tribe 

of Judah? 

It is not proved, except inferentially. The Jews, in 
constructing their genealogical tables, reckoned wholly 
by males. Some of the best modern authorities, how- 
ever, observing all the rules followed by the Hebrews 
in genealogies, have reached the conclusion that in 
Zorobabel the lines of Solomon and Nathan unite, 
and that Joseph and Mary are therefore of the same 
tribe and family, being both descendants of David in 
the line of Solomon and that both have in them the 
blood of Nathan. David's son, Joseph, has descent 
from Abiud (Matt. 1 113) and Mary from Rhesa (Luke 
3 :2j), sons of Zorobabel. The genealogies of Matthew 
and Luke are parts of one perfect whole; the former 
bearing the descent of Mary and Joseph from Solo- 
mon — the latter the descent of both from Nathan. 

153. Who Were the Parents of Mary? 

Many scholars are of opinion that she was the daugh- 
ter of the Heli mentioned in Luke 3 123. As the Jews 
reckoned their genealogy by the male side only, it was 
customary to set a man's son-in-law down as his son. 
This would account for Joseph being described by one 



New Testament Subjects 154-156 

evangelist as the son of Jacob and by the other as the 
son of Heli. Apart from that theory there are no data 
for ascertaining the parentage of Mary. 

154. How Many Marys Are There in the Bible? 

The Marys spoken of in the New Testament are: 
Mary the mother of Christ, Mary Magdalene, Mary 
the sister of Lazarus, Mary the wife of Cleophas (John 
19:25) and Mary the mother of John (Acts 12:12). 

155. Who Are the Nestorians? 

They are the descendants of a sect of early Chris- 
tians, named after Nestorius, a theologian of the fifth 
century A. D. They claim also to be descended from 
Abraham, and sometimes call themselves Chaldeans. 
They are probably the oldest of the Oriental churches. 
They are found in Persia, in India, East Indies, Syria, 
Arabia, Asia Minor, and even in Cochin China, the 
principal settlements, however, being in and near 
Persia. They believe Christ to be both divine and 
human — two persons, with only a moral and sym- 
pathetic union. They do not believe in any divine 
humiliation nor any exaltation of humanity in Christ. 
They acknowledge the supreme authority of the Scrip- 
tures and believe they contain all that is essential to 
salvation. The main body of Nestorians is nominally 
Christian, but it is a lifeless Christianity. They have 
no images, but they invoke the Virgin and the saints 
and are ignorant and superstitious. 

156. Who Were the Nicolaitanes ? 

Though they are mentioned in Rev. 2:15 it is not 
positively known, but from the context it would appear 



156 Difficult Bible Questions 

that they were people who abused Paul's doctrine of 
Christian liberty, which they turned into license. It 
is supposed that Jude 4 refers to them. They appear 
to have attended the heathen rites and shared in the 
abominations there practised. Some suppose them to 
have been followers of Nicolas of Antioch, but if so, 
they falsely claimed that he taught such things. It 
is more probable that the name, if relating to a person 
at all, has been confused with some other Nicolas. 



157-158 



WORDS AND TERMS 



157. What Significance Has the Word "Abba," 

as When It Precedes the Wotd "Father" ? 

"Abba" is the Hebrew word for "father," in the 
emphatic or definite state, as "thy father." Its use 
in referring to God was common among the Jews; 
but in order that it might not seem too familiar or 
irreverent, the New Testament writers gave it the two- 
fold form, which has become a recognized phrase ins 
Christian worship. It is as though they said : "Father, 
our Father." 

158. What Are We to Understand by the Battle 

of Armageddon, Referred to in Revela- 
tion? 

Armageddon is the name given to the last great 
battle to be fought in the world's history, in which 
the whole human race is arrayed on one side or the 
other. It is to be the final struggle of Antichrist. 
When it will be fought no one can tell ; but that there 
will be a great struggle we are assured. Before that 
day comes "many false prophets shall arise and lead 
many astray . . . iniquity shall be multiplied and 
the love of many shall wax cold." There are to be 
false Christs, false teachers doing signs and wonders, 
and leading astray "even the elect if such were pos- 
sible." It is to be preceded by a period of apostasy, 
in which the authority of the wicked one will be fully 



159-159A Difficult Bible Questions 

demonstrated, with the assumption of divinity and the 
demand for universal worship as God. In the present 
stage of the conflict between good and evil, when 
mighty forces are arrayed on both sides, we can see 
the foreshadowing of the fierce struggle that is to 
come; but we may rest assured that righteousness 
will triumph in the end. (See the parallel passage 
in Joel 3:2-12.) Armageddon is "the mountain of 
Megiddo," west of the Jordan, a scene of early his- 
toric battles and the place that would naturally suggest 
itself to the mind of a Galilean writer to whom the 
place and its associations were familiar. 

159. What Is Meant by the "Prince of the 
Power of the Air"? 

It refers to Satan (Eph. 2:2), the "prince of evil/' 
who assails men on earth with trials and temptations. 
The word "power" is used here for the embodiment 
of that evil spirit which is the ruling principle of all 
unbelief, especially among the heathen. (See I Tim. 
4:1; II Cor. 4:4; John 12:31.) 

159 A. What Is to Be Understood by Being 
"Baptized for the Dead"? 

Beuzel translated the familiar passage in I Cor. 
15:29 thus: "Over the dead/' or "immediately upon 
the dead," meaning those who will be gathered to the 
dead immediately after baptism. Many in the ancient 
church put off baptism till near death. The passage 
probably referred to some symbolical rite of baptism 
or dedication of themselves to follow the dead even to 
death. Another view held by some expositors is that 
it was a custom to baptize certain persons with the 



Words and Terms 160-162 

names of the dead, in the hope that they might inherit 
their spirit and carry on their work. 

160. What Is the Baptism of Fire? 

It has been variously interpreted to mean : ( I ) the 
baptism of the Holy Spirit, (2) the fires of purgatory, 
and (3) the everlasting fires of hell. Modern theo- 
logians take the view that the baptism of fire and that 
of the Holy Ghost are the same, and that it may be 
rendered "baptized with the Holy Ghost through the 
outward symbol of fire/' or "as with the cloven tongues 
of fire/' referring to the Pentecostal baptism. 

161. Have Automobiles and Airships Been the 

Subject of Biblical Prophecy? 

Nahum 2 14 has been quoted as referring to auto- 
mobiles, but this appears to strain the meaning of the 
passage, which was written as a direct prophecy of the 
destruction of Nineveh. The verse describes the mad 
rush of those in chariots to escape the enemy. Isa. 
60:8 has been thought by some to be a reference to 
the coming use of airships, but here again the direct 
meaning is obvious, that in the time of Judea's pros- 
perity ships shall flock to her shores as doves to the 
windows of their dovecotes. Hab. 1 :8 might be 
thought to presage manflight, but the figure is used to 
express the terrific haste with which the Chaldeans 
shall come against Judea. 

162. What Is Meant by the "Beast and His 

Mark"? 

The Seer of Revelation appears to have had his 
visions in the form of a series of scenes, as in a pan- 
orama. Almost at the close (Rev. 14:9) he saw the 



163 Difficult Bible Questions 

beast you refer to. It is evidently identical with the 
beast described by Daniel (7:7). It is representative 
of the power which is said to have throughout the 
world's history opposed God. It appears in John's 
narrative in a series of forms, and is sometimes iden- 
tified with a persecuting church, and sometimes is the 
civil power. At the culmination of its career, John saw 
it as the great Antichrist, who is yet to arise, who 
would attain to such power in the world that he would 
exclude any many from office and from even engag- 
ing in trade, who did not acknowledge him. Only 
those who bear the mark of the beast can buy or sell 
in that time. This mark may be a badge to be worn 
on forehead or hand, or as some scholars think, merely 
the coins to be used in business, which will bear Anti- 
christ's title symbolized by the number 666. 

163. How Was the Brazen Serpent a Type? 

"As the serpent was lifted up in the wilderness, so 
must the son of man be lifted up." These were the 
Saviour's words. Jesus' death on the cross was an 
uplifting, and in this sense it is compared to the up- 
lifting of the brazen serpent. In both cases the remedy 
is divinely provided and there is another striking 
similarity: As death came to the Israelites in the 
wilderness by the serpent's sting and life came by the 
uplifting of a serpent, so, in redemption, by man came 
death, and by the death of the God-man in the like- 
ness of sinful flesh comes life eternal. In the first 
instance the cure was effected by directing the eye to 
the uplifted serpent; in the other, it takes place when 
the eye of faith is fixed upon the uplifted Christ. 



Words and Terms 164 

164. Were the Giants Mentioned in Genesis 6:4 
the Descendants of Angels, As Some 
Fanciful Interpreters Claim? 

This has been answered by a notable authority as 
follows: "Gen. 6:1-4 forms the introduction to the 
story of the Flood. All races have preserved the tra- 
dition of a flood; whether it was universal or local is 
a moot point. The Jewish Scriptures leave the in- 
vestigation of natural phenomena to human research. 
The Bible is not a scientific treatise. Its sole concern 
is religious and moral. Its aim is to justify the ways 
of God to man, and to show that natural phenomena, 
being controlled by God, are in harmony with divine 
justice. Hence, before relating the story of the Flood, 
Holy Writ sets forth the universal corruption which 
justified the destruction of the human race, with the 
exception of one family. Chapter 6:1-4 describes the 
violence and immorality prevalent in the antediluvian 
period. Mankind had, in course of time, fallen into 
two divisions — the classes and the masses. The masses 
were the common multitude of toilers, the ordinary 
'sons of men/ The classes were the 'supermen/ 'the 
sons of God/ 'the mighty heroes/ The latter formed 
the aristocracy; they were the ruling class, the chil- 
dren of judges and princes. Small in number, they 
were physically strong and mentally vigorous, and 
had, moreover, appropriated a large portion of the 
wealth of the then known world. They should have 
used their power and position for the benefit of their 
kind, and set an example in chastity, temperance, self- 
restraint, justice and kindliness. Instead, they gave way 
to unbridled lust, to indulge which they resorted to 



164 Difficult Bible Questions 

violence. They saw that the daughters of men (i. e., 
the common folk) were fair, and they took (i. e., 
by force) whomsoever they chose/ This abuse of 
power was punished by the destruction of the race. 
'The Eternal said: My spirit shall not abide in man 
forever.' The Hebrew word may mean 'abide as a 
sword in a sheath'; or it may mean 'contend with 
man' — the higher with the lower nature — the spirit of 
heaven with the body formed of dust and its instincts, 
of the earth, earthy; or it may mean 'My spirit shall 
not rule in man.' The struggle is too severe. 'Since 
he is but flesh, his days shall be one hundred and 
twenty years.' On account of the moral infirmity in- 
cident to human nature, time will be given for repent- 
ance. If the opportunity is not taken, destruction 
will follow the respite. Nephilim literally means 'the 
fallen.' On the principle of lucus a non lucendo, the 
term refers to the men of gigantic stature who existed 
in ancient times. They were the mighty men who 
yielded to licentious passions. The children of these 
illegitimate unions were also, for some generations, 
Nephilim of gigantic stature, famed for their physical 
and mental development, but morally degenerate. They 
were the renowned heroes of old — the mighty warriors, 
like the berserkers of the northern sagas." 

Another view is that "the sons of God" were the 
Sethites, who had mantained in some measure the 
filial relationship to God, and who now intermarried 
with the Cainites, who had been spiritually disowned 
on account of their godlessness and unbelief. All the 
evidence leads to the conclusion that the whole ar- 
raignment of wickedness upon the earth related to 
beings of flesh and blood (see Gen. 6:3) and not to 



Words and Terms 165-166 

supernatural beings, who, we are elsewhere told dis- 
tinctly, have no distinction of sex and never marry (see 
Luke 20:35, 36). In this view, which seems to be 
the correct one, the appellation "sons of God" refers 
to men's moral and in no sense to their physical state. 
There are many passages elsewhere that bear out this 
belief. (See Acts 17:28; Ex. 4:22, 23; Deut. 14:1; 
Hosea 11 :i, etc.) 

165. What Is Meant by "Casting Out Devils ?" 

The question has been the subject of dispute for 
many generations. The plain meaning of the narrative, 
however, seems to us to be that Satan had gained ab- 
solute possession and control of the afflicted persons 
and that Christ evicted him by his superior power. It 
seems to us impossible on any other assumption to 
satisfactorily explain the words of exorcism Christ 
used, the words uttered by the afflicted persons and 
the effects which followed. The symptoms described 
very closely resemble those of some forms of epilepsy 
and insanity of our time. Science, however, does not 
now ascribe the affliction to demoniacal possession. 
Nevertheless some of the patients do occasionally dis- 
play a degree of malignity and cunning which could 
scarcely be exceeded if they were really possessed by 
the devil. 

16& What and Where Is the "Kingdom of 
God?" 

There are several senses in which the word "king- 
dom" is used. It may be taken in general terms as 
the kingdom which is set up in the heart (as Christ 
told the Pharisees, Luke 17:21, "The kingdom of God 



167-168 Difficult Bible Questions 

is within you") and the kingdom which is set up in 
the world (see Daniel 2:44) and the kingdom Christ 
will establish at his second [coming (II Timothy 
4:1), and there is the kingdom in heaven where God 
reigns. In the first of these senses we enter the king- 
dom at conversion when we give our allegiance to 
Christ. 

167. What Is Being "Baptized Unto Death"? 

The passage in Rom. 6:3, 4, 5 implies that those 
who have gone through this experience have formally 
surrendered the whole state and life of sin, as being 
dead in Christ. Verse 4 is more accurately interpreted 
"by the same baptism which makes us sharers in his 
death we are made partakers of his burial also," thus 
severing our last link of connection with the sinful 
condition and life which Christ brought to an end in 
his death. Possibly immersion was alluded to in this 
verse as symbolical of burial and resurrection. Verse 
5 is self-explanatory. 

168. In What Sense Is the Believer "In Christ"? 

The reference is exclusively to the relation of the 
believer to the risen Lord, and expresses a peculiar 
spiritual connection. Rev. David Smith, the distin- 
guished theologian, defines it as a spiritual way of four 
connecting links, viz.: (1) Christ for us (see II Cor. 
5 :2l), which is substitution ; (2) We in Christ (II Cor. 
5:7; Rom. 6:11), which is justification; (3) Christ in 
us (Rom. 8:11; II Cor. 13:5; Gal. 2:20), which is 
sanctification, and (4) We for Christ (II Cor. 5:10), 
which is consecration. This is the condition of Christ's 
true disciple. He stands in the world as representa- 



Words and Terms 169-170 

tive and witness-bearer for Christ. It is not merely 
a question of his own salvation ; Jie must be a shining 
light to guide others, and must live the Christ-life, 
under whatever circumstances he may be placed. One 
who lives the Christ-life and all of whose thoughts, 
acts, influences and hopes are centered on carrying on 
the work of Christ, and who is guided by his will, 
can be said to be truly "in Christ/' 

169. What Is It to Be "Risen with Christ"? 

Paul had described himself as having been crucified 
with Christ (Gal. 2:20). He was dead to the world 
through the death of Christ, dead to sin, to worldly 
ambition, and to all the worldly principles and motives. 
But he might have been asked, "Was he really dead ?" 
and, in Col. 3:1, he answers that, like Christ, he had 
received a new life, having been raised with him, as 
he had been crucified with him. This was the resur- 
rection life by which he had become transformed, and 
was a new creature in Christ Jesus. It was this that 
Augustine meant when he was greeted by a dissolute 
companion of his youth, whom he had passed on the 
street without recognition. "August, it is I, do you 
not know me?" He replied: "I am August no 
longer." Having become a Christian (risen with 
Christ) he had abandoned all his old life with its 
companions and associations. 

170. What Is the Bible Definition of a Chris- 

tian? 

A Christian is (1) one who believes in Jesus Christ 
the divine Son of God, and that through his life and 
atonement we have everlasting life; (2) the Christian 



171-172 Difficult Bible Questions 

through his fellowship with Christ receives the adop- 
tion of a child of God (see I John 3 :2 and 5 :i) ; (3) 
he enters into fellowship and communion with God. 
See Heb. 2:11, 16; I John 1 13; Prov. 18:24. (4) He 
is sanctified and separated. See Rom. 1 17; I Pet. 1 :i4, 
15; I Thess. 5:23. (5) He is a soldier. I Tim. 6:12; 
II Tim. 2 13, 4. (6) He is an heir of glory. Rom. 
8:17; Gal. 3:29; Gal. 4:7; Titus 3:7; I Pet. 1:3, 4. 

171. Who Were the First Christians? 

See Acts 11:26; 26:28 and I Peter 4:16 which make 
the earliest mention of the term "Christian" being used 
to distinguish this from other religious sects. Thus, 
though the three Magi or Eastern princes, who came, 
led by the star, to worship the infant Christ (see Matt. 
2:1-5), and the shepherds who also worshiped (see 
Luke 2:15, 16, 17) and the aged Simeon and Anna 
(same chapter) doubtless believed, they were not Chris- 
tians in name ; nor does it appear that either the divine 
nature of the Master or his mission were clearly com- 
prehended until John the Baptist proclaimed him as 
Messiah. His disciples were literally the first Chris- 
tians, being both believers and followers. The first 
Christians known as such by name, were those of the 
church founded by Paul and Barnabas at Antioch about 
A. D. 34. The term "Christian" is said to have been 
first used in the Episcopate of Evodius at Antioch, 
who was appointed by the Apostle Peter as his own 
successor. 

172. When Was the First "Church" So Called? 

The word "church" is first applied by Luke the 
evangelist to the company of original disciples at Jeru- 



Words and Terms 173 

salem at Pentecost (Acts 2:47), an( i 1S afterwards 
applied in Acts, Epistles and Revelation to the whole 
Christian body or society, as well as the sanctified of 
God (Eph. 5:27), and to those who profess Christian 
faith under pastors (I Cor. 12:28). It was also ap- 
plied to early societies of Christians in cities and prov- 
inces (Acts 8:1), to Christian assemblies (Rom. 16:5), 
and to small gatherings of friends and neighbors in 
private houses (I Cor. 11 :i8 and 14:19, 28). In those 
early days and for a long time afterward, there was no 
distinctive body and certainly no denomination; the 
church was simply an appellation describing groups of 
believers anywhere. Later, these groups were organized 
into congregations and districts and parishes were 
defined. Then they were called "Christians," the first 
use of this appellation being at Antioch. The Romanist 
claim to priority is an old one, but it does not stand the 
test of history. The title "Catholic Church" (meaning 
the "church universal") was originally given to the 
Christian Church on account of its not being confined 
to Jews but embracing other nationalities. The 
earliest use of this title was about 166 A. D., whereas 
the Roman Catholic Church as such did not come into 
existence until several centuries afterward, when the 
original church divided in consequence of the rivalry 
between the bishops of Rome and Constantinople. 

173. Who First Fixed the Date of Christmas 
Day on December 25th? 

There does not seem to have been any special ob- 
servance of the nativity until the celebration in the 
Eastern Church (or Greek Christian Church) in A. D. 
220. The Western (or Latin) Church began to cele- 



174-175 Difficult Bible Questions 

brate it about a century later. Both adopted the uni- 
form date about A. D. 380. There are some writers, 
however, who affirm that it was solemnly celebrated 
among the early Christians in the second century. 
Chronologists disagree as to the exact year of the 
nativity, but the majority believe it was B. C. 5. The 
celebration was at first held on January 6, but toward 
the end of the fourth century it was changed to Decem- 
ber 25. The Christmas tree, it is said, was first used 
in Europe in the eighth or ninth century, and was 
introduced by a German or Hungarian princess. 

174. How Are We to Understand the Act of 

Creation? 

"Creation" means, in the orthodox sense, that God 
of his own free will and by his absolute power, called 
the whole universe into being, evoking into existence 
that which before was nonexistent. See Rom. 4:17; 
Ps- 33-6, 9; Heb. 3:4; Acts 17:24; Acts 14:15; Ps. 
102:5; Jer. 10:12; John 1:3; Rev. 4:11. It is need- 
less to speculate on these matters. If we concede the 
absolute power of God, we must accept his power both 
to create and annihilate, as stated in the Scriptures. 
There are many problems which the finite mind can- 
not wholly grasp and which must be accepted by faith 
or left alone. 

175. What Is Demoniac Possession? 

Whether or not there are evil spirits and the fact 
of demon possession has often proved baffling to 
believers. Ephesians 6 :i2, for instance, is a recognition 
of the existence and power of evil spirits. It is in- 
timated that there are kingdoms of evil, ruled by 



Words and Terms 175 

wicked beings, which are fighting the powers of good. 
Against these forces the Christian, protected by the 
armor of God, is called to fight The expression "in 
high places/' or as translated in the margin, "heavenly 
places," may mean in the "upper air," as some interpret 
it, or as others hold, that even in the highest Christian 
experiences we are subject to temptation (which is, 
of course, the case), and that we must contend with the 
evil spirits for the possession of these high places in 
the spiritual world. 

Although many rationalistic teachers have held that 
the Biblical cases of demon possession were nothing 
more than forms of epilepsy, violent hysteria, lunacy 
and other kinds of permanent or temporary mental 
derangement known at the present day, nothing has 
been actually proven which discredits the Scripture 
accounts and statements. Specialists today recognize 
the existence of recurrent mania, which sometimes 
assumes a destructive character. The Bible recognizes 
a form of lunacy different from demon possession. See 
Matt. 4:24. We know there are evil persons who, 
while alive in the flesh, do harm to others. Some have 
the definite experience of feeling themselves impelled 
to do wrong by an influence outside their own minds 
or bodies. Some present-day cases of insanity are 
really cases in which there are features that furnish a 
close parallel to demon possession. It is only fair to 
state, however, that present-day theological opinion 
is divided on the subject. It is certain that the belief 
in demon possession was held in early Christian times, 
and for long ages thereafter, and included at one time 
almost every form of mental disorder. On the other 
hand, it is urged that it is just as rational to believe in 



176-177 Difficult Bible Questions 

devils as to believe in angels. Angels are a race of 
personal holy beings ; demons a race of personal vicious 
beings, both existing in a form other than human and 
corporeal. 

176. In What Sense Was Man Created in the 

Divine Likeness? 

Man's likeness to God, referred to in Gen. 1 '.26, is 
the great fact which distinguishes him from the rest 
of creation. He is a "person" with power to think, 
feel and will, and with the capacity for moral life and 
growth. Still further, at the beginning, man had not 
only the capacity for moral life, but his moral disposi- 
tion was such that he loved God, loved the right, and 
hated the wrong. The tragedy of the fall reversed this. 
Man was still a person and still had the capacity for 
righteousness, but his spirit was so changed that he 
feared and distrusted God, and, to a greater or less ex- 
tent, loved the evil and disliked the good. Jesus came 
to undo this calamity and to restore us to a moral like- 
ness to God. 

177. What Is Meant by the "Elect"? 

"Elect" is a term variously applied. It sometimes 
meant the ancient church, and the whole body of bap- 
tized Christians ; again, it was those elected to baptism ; 
and still again, it was the newly baptized who had just 
been admitted to full Christian privileges. Further 
it is applied to those especially chosen for the Lord's 
work, like his prophets and evangelists, and to those 
who had undergone tribulation and even martyrdom. 
It has been applied to the whole Jewish people as 
chosen of God. Finally, it is applied to individuals 



Words and Terms 178 

who, not of their own merit, but through God's grace, 
through Jesus Christ, are chosen not only to salva- 
tion, but to sanctification of the spirit and who are holy 
and blameless before the Lord. They are individuals 
specially chosen out of the world to be heirs of salva- 
tion and witnesses for God before men. This is not 
of works, but of free grace. In a general way, the 
"elect" are the sanctified — those chosen to salvation 
through sanctification of the spirit, as explained in 
Peter 1 :2 and similar passages. They are the special 
vessels of the Spirit chosen in God's good pleasure to 
carry out his purposes. This election is of grace and not 
of works (see Rom. 9:18, 22, 23). In all ages such 
men have been evidently chosen by the Lord as his wit- 
nesses. This choice is at once an expression of his 
sovereignty and his grace. Paul himself was so chosen. 
On the other hand, it should not be forgotten that 
salvation is by grace. The whole subject of election 
has been one of acute controversy for ages and has 
given rise to many differences of opinion. The atti- 
tude of Christians with regard to the Second Coming 
should be one of prayer, expectancy and constant 
preparation. 

178. What Is Meant by "Saved, Yet As by 
Fire"? 

The apostle in I Cor. 3:15 speaks of mistaken teach- 
ings and concludes that the man whose work was not 
of genuine character, who had been seeking worldly 
gain and popularity and not trying to win and build up 
souls, would lose the reward which would be given 
to the preacher who built on the foundation of Christ, 
"gold, silver, and precious stones." The unprofitable 



179-180 Difficult Bible Questions 

worker's work he likens to wood and stubble which 
would not stand the day of judgment. Even though 
his soul should be saved, he would miss the reward 
promised to the faithful worker, while his own work, 
being false, will not escape the destruction. 

179. What Is Meant by "Strange Fire"? 

The "strange fire" mentioned in Lev. 10:1, 2 is un- 
derstood to mean that Nadab and Abihu, instead of 
taking fire into their censers from the brazen altar, 
took common fire which had not been consecrated, 
and thus were guilty of sacrilege. They had witnessed 
the descent of the miraculous fire from the cloud (see 
chapter 9:24), and they were under solemn obligation 
to use that fire which was specially appropriated to the 
altar service. But instead of doing so, they became 
careless, showing want of faith and lamentable irrev- 
erence, and their example, had it been permitted to pass 
unpunished, would have established an evil precedent. 
The fire that slew them issued from the most holy 
place, which is the accepted interpretation of the words, 
"from the Lord." Besides, the two young priests had 
already been commanded (or warned) not to do the 
thing they did (verse 2). They had undertaken to per- 
form acts which belonged to the high priest alone, and 
even to intrude into the innermost sanctuary. See the 
warnings in Ex. 19:22 and Lev. 8:35. 

180. What Was the Forbidden Fruit? 

There have been many interpretations of the Fall, 
and the books on the subject would fill a small library. 
The majority of the early Christian fathers held the 
Mosaic account to be historical, and interpreted it 



Words and Terms 181-182 

literally, believing that an actual fruit of some kind, not 
definitely known, was eaten by our first parents. A 
few early writers, Philo among them, regarded the 
story of the Fall as symbolical and mystical, shadowing 
forth allegorical truths, and that the serpent was the 
symbol of pleasure, and the offense was forbidden 
sensuous indulgence. Whatever the "fruit" may have 
been, its use was plainly the violation of a divine pro- 
hibition, the indulgence of an unlawful appetite, the 
sinful aspiration after forbidden knowledge. Profes- 
sor Banks, several years ago, while traveling in the 
region of the Tigris and Euphrates, found in a little 
known district a place which the natives declared to 
be the traditional site of Eden and a tree (name and 
species unknown) which they believed to be the suc- 
cessor of the original tree of knowledge, and it was 
venerated greatly. It bore no fruit. 

181. What Are the Spiritual Gifts? 

For an enumeration of the spiritual gifts see Acts 
11:17; I Cor. 12 and 13; I Peter 4:10. The gift of 
healing is held by some denominations as having be- 
longed exclusively to apostolic times, while others claim 
that it is granted even now to those who have sufficient 
faith. 

182. What Is a "Generation" ? 

"Generation" is used in a variety of senses in the 
Scriptures. In some cases, it means a period of limit- 
less duration; in others it means the past (Isa. 51 :8), 
and still others the future (Ps. 100:5) \ again, it means 
both the past and future (Ps. 102:24). In Gen. 6:9 
it means all men living at any given time. In Prov. 



183 Difficult Bible Questions 

30:11, 14 it refers to a class of men with some special 
characteristics, and in Ps. 49:19 it may be interpreted 
to mean the "dwelling-place." A generation, in mod- 
ern phraseology, means thirty to thirty-five years, 
but there is no instance of the word being used in this 
particular sense in the Bible. Thus, "the book of the 
generation of Jesus Christ" is a genealogical record 
extending back to Abraham. In I Peter 2 :g it means 
an elect race. 

183. What Was the "Gift of Tongues"? 

It is understood to have been not only the power of 
speaking various languages which the speaker had not 
previously studied or acquired, but also the power to 
speak a spiritual language unknown to man, uttered in 
ecstasy and understood only by those enlightened by 
the Holy Spirit. Paul, in I Cor. 12 :io, is writing not to 
depreciate this gift, but to warn the Corinthians not to 
be led away by unprofitable or doubtful manifestations 
of it. Even in those early days of the Church, the lead- 
ers had difficulty in controlling the tendency to fanati- 
cism among its adherents. The gift of tongues at Pente- 
cost was given because of a great and urgent need. It 
is supposed by some authorities to have been speaking 
so that under the direction of the Holy Spirit it sounded 
to the ear of every auditor as though it were his own 
mother-tongue. There were many nationalities repre- 
sented in the throng, but no confusion or misunder- 
standings. The gift of tongues on this particular occa- 
sion was the miraculous method employed to bring into 
the Gospel fold the strangers from other lands. The 
lesson is that God is not the author of confusion, and 
he never gives a message to his children that is unin- 



Words and Terms 184 

telligible. Any "gift" or message that is incapable of 
being understood is not of God. We should try the 
spirits by this simple but decisive test. 

184. What Does "God's Image" Mean? 

In discussing spiritual things, to be right, no one can' 
go beyond the word of Scripture. The Bible tells us 
that God gave to man a living soul. In this sense he 
was in the image of his Maker in his dispositions, 
temperament and desires, and in his obedience to the 
divine will; but this condition was forfeited through 
sin. It could only be said thereafter of those who 
walked uprightly before God and were inspired of him, 
that they were "his offspring." (Matt. 13:38; Mark 
7:10. See John 12:36; Acts 13:10; Col. 3:6.) Jesus 
himself drew the distinction when he told the wicked 
scribes and Pharisees that they were the children of 
the evil one, and this is the actual condition of every 
one living in sin, unrepentant and unforgiven. Thus 
while in his perfect condition man was like his Maker, 
in a condition of sin he is no longer so, nor has he 
any of the spiritual attributes and qualities that belong 
to the perfect condition, or even of the pardoned sinner, 
who has the hope through Christ of reconciliation and 
restoration. The Bible nowhere declares that man is of 
himself and inherently immortal. "The soul that sin- 
neth, it shall die." When sin entered, then came physi- 
cal decay and death ; man's first condition was lost and 
with the continuance of sin, and unrepentant and un- 
forgiven, he also forfeited spiritual immortality. Eter- 
nal life is the gift of God. Paul declares that Jesus, 
through .his Gospel, brought life and immortality to 



185-186 Difficult Bible Questions 

light for fallen man and showed the path to 
restoration through repentance, forgiveness and ac- 
ceptance. 

185. Where Did the Jews Get the Name 

"Hebrews"? 

It is held by the best authorities and by the Jews 
themselves that the name is derived from Heber, or 
Eber (which means "from the other side," or a so- 
journer, or immigrant). Heber was the son of Salah 
and the father of Peleg (see Gen. 10:24, 11 114, and I 
Chron. 1:25). Abram was the first to be called a 
Hebrew (Gen. 14:13), presumably in the immigrant 
sense. The name is seldom used of the Israelites in 
the Old Testament, except when the speaker is a for- 
eigner, or when the Israelites speak of themselves to 
one of another nation. Some writers have held that 
Hebrew is derived from Abraham (Abrai), but this 
explanation is not generally adopted. 

186. What Was the "Heresies" of Apostolic 

Times ? 

The Greek word translated "heresies" in Gal. 5 :20 
means either an opinion or a party. As used in the 
New Testament it stands for an opinion "varying from 
the true exposition of the Christian faith" (as in II 
Peter 2:11), or a body of men following mistaken or 
blameworthy ideas, or, as a combination of these two 
meanings, "dissensions." This latter definition "dis- 
sensions" is the rendering given by Thayer in this 
passage. The American revision translates the word 
"parties," leaving, however, the expression "heresies" 
as the marginal reading. The three last words of the 



Words and Terms 187-188 

verse, "strife/' "seditions/' "heresies," are, in the 
American revision, "factions, divisions, parties." 

187. What Is an Indulgence? 

An "indulgence" is a spiritual bill of health or offi- 
cial act of pardon granted by the Church of Rome. 
It has no warrant in Scripture. There are indulgences 
to ease the way of souls out of purgatory, indulgences 
for the living, permitting them to eat meat on holy 
days ; indulgences for the forgiveness of past sins, and, 
in Spain at least, and probably in other countries, in- 
dulgences for those who have committed crimes, by 
which they are relieved of the responsibility of their 
acts. Indulgences are usually purchased with a fee, 
although in some cases they are granted in considera- 
tion of undergoing some form of penance. A recent 
illustration is the distribution of indulgences during the 
Eucharistic Congress in Vienna, where they seem to 
have been granted free to many people as a reward for 
their loyalty and devotion to the Catholic Church on 
that occasion. 

188. What Is Meant by "Because Thou Hast 

Left Thy First Love"? 

These words (in Rev. 2:4) were addressed to the 
Christian believers at Ephesus. The "first love" does 
not refer to any person or influence other than Christ, 
but simply means that the Ephesians had lost the in- 
tensity of their affection and zeal for Christ. The 
Ephesian Church had had special opportunities and 
blessing. Under Paul's ministrations its members had 
received the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6); 
the apostle had resided with them for three years (Acts 



189-190 Difficult Bible Questions 

20:31) ; he had later written to them what is perhaps 
his most spiritually exalted epistle. Their experience 
of love for Christ had been warm and keen. In his 
message sent them through John the Master is reprov- 
ing them for having allowed their love for him to grow 
weak and cold. 

189. How Did Satan Receive the Name "Lu- 

cifer"? 

There have been at different times various inter- 
pretations of the famous passage in Isa. 14:12: "How 
art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the 
morning ! how art thou cut down to the ground, which 
didst weaken the nations !" "Lucif er" means "light- 
bringer," and has also been translated "son of the 
morning," "morning star," "brilliant," "splendid," 
"illustrious." Tertullian and Gregory the Great in- 
terpreted the passage in Isaiah as referring to the fall 
of Satan, and, since their time, the name "Lucifer" has 
been almost universally held by the Christian Church 
to be an appellation of Satan before the fall. Dr. 
Henderson, a famous commentator, simply interprets 
it "illustrious son of the morning," and holds that it 
has no reference to the fall of the apostate angels. 
Some later authorities claim that the passage has a 
prophetic reference to the fall from power of the great 
and illustrious King of Babylon, who surpassed all 
other monarchs of his time in splendor. 

190. What Were the "Marks of the Lord Jesus" ? 

It was a practice to brand slaves with their owners' 
initials. A slave by showing the brand proved to whom 
his service was due and that no one else had a claim 



Words and Terms 191 

upon him. The marks of the Lord Jesus which Paul 
bore (Gal. 6:17) were the scars received in his service 
— the marks of the rods with which he was beaten and 
the wounds he received in fighting with wild beasts. 
He showed them as evidence that he belonged to the 
Lord Jesus. 

191. Who Were the Magi? 

These wise men were from either Arabia, Meso- 
potamia, Egypt, or somewhere else in the East. "East" 
is not to be understood in our wide, modern sense, but 
referred to those countries that lie to the east as well as 
north of Palestine. Thus, Persia is referred to as the 
"East" (Isa. 46:11). While it is true that the Gospel 
account does not state the number of wise men, but 
simply says they were from the East, many ancient 
traditions have been preserved from the early days of 
the Christian Church, among them one which states 
that there were three Magian princes, and gives their 
names as Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar, who came 
with a large retinue of servants and camels. Magism 
is supposed to have originated in Chaldea and thence 
spread to the adjacent countries. The Magians are 
believed to have been originally Semitic. Among the 
Greeks and Romans they were known as Chaldeans. 
Daniel sympathized with the order during his exile, 
and probably became one of their number. They be- 
lieved in God, hated idolatry and looked for a Messiah. 
The latter fact alone would almost be regarded as con- 
clusive evidence of their Semitic descent. There are 
no absolute data, however, for asserting it positively. 
For many generations the Magi has looked for the ful- 



192 Difficult Bible Questions 

fillment of the prophecy contained in Numbers 24:17 
". . . there shall come a star out of Jacob . . ." 
and when the light as guiding star indicated the 
direction of Judea they knew the prophecy had been 
fulfilled. "His star" can be interpreted as "his sign." 
Whatever form it assumed, it was sufficiently marked 
as an astronomical phenomenon to claim attention. 
Some writers have contended that it was visible to the 
Magi alone; others hold that it was a heavenly light, 
standing as a beacon of glory over the manger; still 
others, that it was the luminous figure of an angel. 
Tradition asserts that "the star" guided the Magi both 
by day and by night. The infant Saviour was probably 
over two months old when the visit of the Magi took 
place. They had seen the phenomenon of the star 
long before their arrival in Jerusalem, two months 
after Jesus had been presented in the temple, and it 
was some time after this that the Magi arrived in 
Jerusalem and went thence to Bethlehem to worship 
him and offer gifts. It must have taken them many 
months to accomplish the journey from their own coun- 
try to Palestine. The Magi brought the first material 
Christmas gifts when they presented their love offer- 
ings. 

192. What Did Paul Mean by "The Revelation 
of the Man of Sin"? 

Paul evidently believed that immediately before the 
second coming of Christ there would be fierce tempta- 
tion and persecution (II Thess. 2:3). Christ referred 
to the same event (see Matt. 24:20-25). The man of 
sin is the Antichrist or Pseudo-Christ, who is to de- 
ceive many. He is described in Rev. 13:11-18. 



Words and Terms 193 

193. When Was the Sabbath Changed from 
the Seventh to the First Day of the Week ? 

The New Testament indicates that the Jewish 
Christians held both days holy. Paul evidently 
preached in the synagogues on the Sabbath, but it was 
on the first day of the week that the Gentile Chris- 
tians met to break bread (Acts 20:7). This second 
sacred day was called the Lord's Day to distinguish it 
from the Sabbath, and was probably the only one ob- 
served by the Gentile converts. There is a hint of 
their being called to account for observing that day 
only, in Col. 2 :i6, where Paul bids them pay no heed 
to their critics. The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, 
written certainly before the year 100 A. D., speaks of 
the Lord's Day and refers to it as a day of holy meeting 
and the breaking of bread (chapter 14). The primi- 
tive Christians everywhere kept it so solemnly. Pliny, 
the historian, refers to this fact in his letter to Trajan 
about A. D. 100. Justin Martyr (A. D. 140) describes 
the religious worship of the early Christians, their 
sacramental observances, etc., on the "First Day." 
Other early writers who make clear and unmistakable 
reference to the Lord's Day are Dionysius of Corinth, 
Irenseus of Lyons (who asserted that the Sabbath was 
abolished), Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Origen, 
Cyprian, Commodian, Victorinus, and lastly Peter of 
Alexandria (A. D. 300), who says: "We keep the 
Lord's Day as a day of joy because of him who rose 
thereon." These evidences cover the first two cen- 
turies after our Lord's death and indicate that the 
Lord's Day is an institution of apostolic sanction and 
custom. All grounds of doubt are swept away by 



194 Difficult Bible Questions 

the fact that Constantine in an edict issued in A. D. 
321 honored that day by recognizing it as one sacred 
to the Christians, and ordered that business should be 
intermitted thereon. Finally, the Council of Nicsea 
(A. D. 325) in its official proceedings gave directions 
concerning the forms of Christian worship on that 
day, and the Council of Laodicea (A. D. 364) en- 
joined rest on the Lord's Day. Thus by apostolic 
usage, by law and custom, by imperial edict and by 
the highest councils of the early Christian Church 
the change has been accepted and approved. 

194. What Is the Distinction between Sabbath, 
Sunday, and Lord's Day? 

The word "Sabbath" is derived from the Hebrew 
"Shabua," meaning "seven/' or a heptad of seven 
days. It was employed to designate the seventh day 
of the Jewish week (from sunset on Friday to sunset 
on Saturday). Under the Christian dispensation the 
day of rest is changed from the seventh to the first 
day of the week, in memory of Christ's resurrection, 
and its true designation therefore is neither Sabbath 
(which is the ancient Jewish term) nor Sunday 
(which is the heathen appellation, L e., "the day of the 
sun"), but "the Lord's day." It is not with us, as 
with the Jews, a day of rest and absolute abstention 
from all employment, but a day of spiritual recupera- 
tion and religious activities in a thousand different 
directions, and a period of withdrawal from secular 
pursuits. Under the Mosaic law, one might not walk 
beyond a certain distance, nor light a fire, nor even 
carry a handkerchief. With us it is rather a day of 
celebration and glad Christian work, wholly unham- 



Words and Terms 195-196 

pered by the ancient restrictions and obligations which 
were designed to apply to a different age and dis- 
pensation. The use of any one of the three terms — 
Sunday, Sabbath or Lord's Day — is, however, with 
most people, rather a matter of habit than of principle, 
as the historical facts are thoroughly well established. 

195. What Are We to Understand by the "Se- 

cret Place"? 

The "secret place" (see Ps. 91:1) is interpreted as 
meaning "the covert" of his tabernacle — "the beatitude 
of the inner circle, or secret shrine, to which that 
select company of the faithful have access, and where 
they may taste the hidden wisdom." One commentator 
writes that this passage applies "to those who are more 
at home with God than other Christians, and who are 
also more alone with God. In this inner circle the 
childlike spirit is made one with the will and the love 
of the almighty Father. It is a security and a refuge 
against whatsoever may await us in this world or 
elsewhere, and those who belong to it bear on their 
countenances the seal that they are free from fear 
of evil and that they have gained the victory over 
terror and dismay." In brief, it is only those who 
live closely to God who find those divine attributes 
which to others are majestic and overpowering, trans- 
formed into a sure shelter and a joy that lifts all care 
forever from the soul. 

196. Who Were the "Sleeping Saints"? 

The "sleeping saints" (see Thes. 4:14 and Matt. 
2 7 : 5 2 > 53) are held to be Old Testament believers who, 
having served the Lord faithfully according to their 
lights, and who looked forward to the promise of the 



197 Difficult Bible Questions 

Messiah's coming, were quickened at the moment of 
Jesus' death, although they did not come out of their 
graves until his resurrection. The opening of the 
graves was symbolic proclamation that death was 
''swallowed up in victory" ; and the rising of the saints 
after Jesus' resurrection fittingly showed that the 
Saviour of the world was to be the "first" that should 
rise from the dead. (See Acts 26:23 ; Col. 1 :i8; Rev. 

i:5.) 

197. Who Are We to Understand by the "Spirits 
in Prison"? 

The passage in I Peter 3:19, 20 is one which has 
been much discussed. It is generally interpreted as 
meaning that the preaching to the spirits "in prison" 
implies not the preaching of the Gospel, but the 
announcement of Christ's finished work. Nor does 
it imply a second day of grace. The spirits were 
clearly those of the Antediluvians. The passage, how- 
ever, is mysterious and has puzzled Bible students in 
all times. Peter is the only Bible writer who men- 
tions the occurrence, whatever it may have been, so 
that there are no other passages to shed light upon it. 
The apostle was speaking in the context of the opera- 
tion of the Holy Spirit and it has been generally 
thought by Augustine among the Fathers and by Dr. 
Adam Clarke and other modern commentators that he 
referred to the Antediluvians as having, like others 
who lived before Christ, been under the Spirit's in- 
fluence, though they repelled it. In that case his 
meaning would be that Christ .had from the beginning 
been preaching through, or by, the Spirit, to men in 
all ages, as he preaches to men now by his Spirit 



Words and Terms 198 

through his ministers. Other theologians, Dean Al- 
ford among them, contend that somewhere in the uni- 
verse these Spirits were imprisoned and that Christ 
preached to them in the interval between his death and 
resurrection, though that view is surrounded by other 
difficulties which are obvious. The reference is inci- 
dental and does not practically concern us so much 
as does the lesson Peter is enforcing, that through 
the Holy Spirit we are enabled to live to the spirit and 
not to the flesh. 

198. What Does the Word "Spiritual" Really 
Mean? 

The word is one which Christians ought to guard 
zealously in religious phraseology. There is a recent 
tendency to use the word in a loose sense, giving it 
merely its philosophical or scientific meaning rather 
than its real Bible and theological significance. In 
secular phraseology the word means : relating to spirit, 
rather than to matter. Many varying shades of mean- 
ing grow out of this basic idea : one poet may be 
more spiritual than another; one artist than another; 
one musician than another. In this sense the word 
implies a relation to thoughts, emotions, impulses, 
connected with the soul of a man rather than his 
body. But the Christian use of the word is distinctive. 
It is given as the third definition of the word in the 
Standard Dictionary : "Of or relating to the soul 
as acted on by the Holy Spirit." An apt quotation 
from Henry Drummond is given : 'The spiritual life 
is the gift of the living Spirit. The spiritual man is 
no mere development of the natural man. He is a 
new creation, born from above. " In Christian phrase- 



199-200 Difficult Bible Questions 

ology, then, a man is spiritual as he is possessed, filled 
and dominated by the Holy Spirit. 

199. What Was the Purpose of the "Tree of 

Knowledge" ? 

The tree of knowledge of good and evil (Gen, 
2 :8) was designed as a test of obedience by which 
our first parents were to be tried, whether they would 
be good or evil; whether they would chose to obey 
God or break his commandments, and the eating of 
the fruit of the tree revealed to them their new con- 
dition as sinners under divine displeasure. 

200. What Is Known Concerning the "Tree of 

Life"? 

Gen. 2 :g and 3 :22, 24 tells practically all that we 
know of the "tree of life," although a vast amount 
of speculative literature has appeared on the subject. 
Various references to the "tree of life" elsewhere in 
Scripture show that it was regarded as the means pro- 
vided by divine wisdom as an antidote against disease 
and bodily decay. Access to it was conditioned upon 
our first parents obeying the injunction against eat- 
ing the forbidden fruit of the "tree of knowledge," 
which was the test of obedience. Certain Hebrew 
writers have called the two trees "the trees of the 
lives," holding that the wondrous property of one in 
perpetuating physical life and conferring perennial 
health was in direct contrast with the other, the "tree 
of knowledge," which was sure to occasion bodily 
suffering and death. "The tree of life was, in short, 
a sacramental tree," writes one commentator, "by 
the eating of which man, in his state of innocence, 
kept himself in covenant with God." 



Words and Terms 201-202 

201. What Is It to Be "Unequally Yoked"? 

The passage in II Cor. 6:14 may have a wide inter- 
pretation. "Unequally yoked" may mean bound to- 
gether with one who is alien in spirit, although it 
might also mean that the disparity in culture or pos- 
sessions, the difference in race, or in religious belief, 
are to be regarded as insurmountable barriers. In 
early Israelitish times, marriages with heathen were 
forbidden; so in Christian times, unions of believers 
and infidels, or unbelievers in any form, were to be 
avoided. Righteousness and wickedness cannot pull 
in the same harness, and as our first duty is to God, 
we should put away from us all avoidable contact that 
would hinder its performance. Paul in the passage in 
question clearly had in mind the union of believers 
with unbelievers. 

202. Who Are the "Witnesses" Who Surround 

the Believers? 

They are probably the worthies referred to in Heb. 
11 chapter, whose triumph through faith are recalled. 
The word "witnesses" (Heb. 12:1) has two meanings 
and it is not certain which of the two the writer of 
the epistle had in his mind. A witness may be a spec- 
tator, or he may be one who testifies as in a court of 
justice. If the word in this passage is used in the 
former sense, it implies that departed and glorified 
saints are observing the trials and victories of the 
Christian on earth. If the word refers to a testifier, 
it means that the Christian has good reason for mak- 
ing the effort mentioned in the passage, because of 
the testimony of the Old Testament saints cited in the 
previous chapter. 



203 



JESUS' LIFE AND DEATH 



203. Does the Doctrine of Jesus' Divinity De- 
pend on the Miraculous Conception? 

Even if the doctrine of the miraculous conception 
were abandoned, it would be difficult, if not impossible, 
to account for the facts of Christ's life, by any other 
theory than that of his being the incarnation of God. 
If you regard .him as man, you must explain how he, 
a plain peasant, trained as a carpenter, brought up in 
an obscure Oriental town, could live such a life as 
he undoubtedly lived, and give utterance to truths 
which have thrilled the world for nineteen hundred 
years. Besides this he spoke with authority, making 
claims to a higher nature, which if he did not con- 
sciously possess that higher nature, would be false 
claims. His whole life was consistent with his divin- 
ity, andj therefore, even persons who reject his mirac- 
ulous conception, have good ground for believing him 
to be divine. It is the only theory that explains such 
a life. There is no need, however, to reject the doc- 
trine of the miraculous conception. The more you 
study the life of Jesus, the less you will be surprised 
to learn that the promise of God through the prophets, 
of the union of divinity and humanity, was literally 
fulfilled in him. 



Jesus' Life and Death 204-205 

204. Was Christ Born in the Year 1 or in 5 

B.C.? 

As we are told in the Gospels that Herod was liv- 
ing and slaughtered the children after Jesus was born 
(see Matt. 2 :i6), and as it is claimed by chronologists 
to be a matter of record that he died in 750 U. C, 
which corresponds to B. C. 4, it is obvious that Jesus 
was born before that date. Then, on the other hand, 
he was born after the decree for the census (Luke 
2:1) was issued. From Tertullian we learn that the 
decree was issued in 748 and the enrollment began 
in 749 U. C, which corresponds to B. C. 5. Thus the 
birth is fixed by those two occurrences. 

205. Is There a Real Conflict in the Evangelists' 

Genealogies of Christ? 

The purpose of publishing the Saviour's genealogy 
was to show that he had descended from David. 
If the genealogy of Mary had been given, it would 
have carried no weight w r ith the Jews, as they would 
not admit the divine conception, and regarded Joseph 
as the head of the family. It was necessary, on their 
account, to show that Joseph had descended from 
David. It really, however, includes the others, as 
the descendants of David were so proud of their dis- 
tinction, and of the Messianic promise involved, that 
no man of that family would take a wife of any other 
family. Mary, undoubtedly, therefore, was descended 
from David. The theory has been propounded and 
supported by Weiss and other scholars that the 
genealogy of Luke is that of Mary. Luke says (3 -.23) 
that Joseph was the son of Heli, whereas Matthew 
says (1 :i6) that he was the son of Jacob. It is sug- 



206 Difficult Bible Questions 

gested that Luke's statement should read, "who was 
the son-in-law of Heli," that is, married the daughter 
of Heli. Luke traces the descent through David's son 
Nathan, while Matthew traces it through Solomon. 
Even that explanation, however, has its incongruities, 
of which there is no clear explanation. The fact that 
Mary before her marriage went to Bethlehem to be 
taxed or registered (Luke 2:5), would indicate that 
she was of David's house. It is noteworthy, too, that 
Christ's claims to Messiahship were never challenged 
on that ground. If there had been any flaw in his 
pedigree, the Jews would have seized upon it without 
a doubt, because the prophecies clearly stated that 
Messiah would be descended from David. 

206. Who Were the Brothers of Jesus? 

The brethren of Jesus are named in the New Testa- 
ment as James, Joses, Simon and Judas. In Matt. 
12:46; Matt. 13:55; John 2:12, and Acts 1:14 they 
are generally understood to be proper brothers, all 
being named together conjointly with the mother of 
Jesus, and the same is inferred from John 7:5. Some 
of the early church writers, however, held that they 
were merely relatives or cousins (sons of Mary the 
sister of Jesus' mother), it being a common custom 
to call all immediate relatives, nephews, cousins and 
half-brothers, by the general designation of "brothers" 
or "brethren." Further, the early fathers of the 
church held that Mary, the mother of Jesus, had no 
other children. The question still remains open 
whether they were not the sons of Joseph by a former 
marriage, and therefore half-brothers to Jesus. On 
the other hand Matt. 1 :25 and Luke 2 :j favor the 



Jesus' Life and Death 207-208 

view that they were brothers and that Jesus was the 
"first-born. " Sisters of Jesus are also mentioned in 
Matt. 13:56 and Mark 6:3, but their names are not 
given. Much has been written on the subject with- 
out positive determination, although most modern 
commentators hold to the opinion that the "brethren" 
in question were the sons of Joseph and Mary, and 
that Mary's mother's sister had two sons, named James 
and Joses. 

207. Is There a Rational Explanation of the 

Star of Bethlehem? 

There was a remarkable conjunction of Jupiter and 
Saturn about that time, which must have been a very 
brilliant spectacle, and which would be very impressive 
to astrologers. It might lead them to the belief that 
some mighty potentate was born, and probably to 
make inquiry as to such birth. The fact, that would 
doubtless be known to all Orientals, that the Jews 
expected a Messiah, may have led the Magi to Pales- 
tine. Their inquiry for "the King of the Jews" seems 
to imply that it was there they expected to find such 
a being as the conjunction portended. The difficulty, 
however, is to explain the star going before them 
(Matt. 2:9). As they traveled westward, it might 
have had that appearance, but not so definitely as the 
account implies. Another explanation is that it was 
possibly a meteor divinely directed. 

208. Did the Parents of Our Lord Take Him 

After His Birth to Jerusalem or to Egypt? 

According to some, the accounts in Matthew and 
in Luke do not agree. But there is really no discrep- 



209 Difficult Bible Questions 

ancy. After the birth of Jesus, the parents remained 
at Bethlehem until the time arrived for presenting the 
Babe in the Temple, being the end of the days of 
purification. After the presentation, Joseph and Mary 
with the child went to Nazareth, adjusted their affairs 
and returned to Bethlehem, where they were dwelling 
— no longer in a stable but in "a house" — when the 
incident of the Magis' visit occurred. These wise men 
had first gone to Jerusalem, whence they were directed 
to Bethlehem. After their visit Joseph was warned 
by an angelic messenger and the flight into Egypt 
followed. To get a clear idea of the order of events, 
the records of the four evangelists must be taken as 
a whole, as one records incidents which another omits. 
Thus Mark and John contain nothing relative to the 
childhood of Jesus, while Matthew and Luke taken 
together, give a clear outline of these events, though 
Luke omits all reference to the return to Bethlehem 
and the journey into Egypt, the latter of which Mat- 
thew relates with considerable detail. In no sense did 
any one of the four evangelists intend to present a 
complete chronological record of the Saviour's earthly 
life, but each designed rather to supplement what the 
others had written. 

209. How Could Jesus, Being Already Perfect, 
Increase in Wisdom? 

The statement in Luke 2:52 is explicit and there 
is no reason for doubting it. Jesus was subject to 
human conditions and limitations so far as the divine 
nature could be subjected, We read of His being 
weary, of his being hungry and thirsty, and we are 
assured that He was tempted in all points like as we 



Jesus' Life and Death 210 

are, which all show that in His physical nature He 
was human. Doubtless He would be educated like 
other boys, and probably His consciousness of divinity 
would be gradual, and possibly not complete until the 
forty days in the desert. His questioning the doctors 
in the Temple (Luke 2:46) is supposed by some 
authorities to have been not catechizing them but to 
obtain information. 

210. How Old Was Jesus When He Began to 
Understand the Nature of His Mission? 

Although one cannot trace with any degree of pre- 
cision the various stages of development of the con- 
sciousness of his mission, it is evident from the Gos- 
pel record that it must have begun early and gradually 
increased to complete appreciation as manhood ap- 
proached. We are told that even in childhood he "grew 
and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom/' and 
the "grace of God was upon him." (Luke 2:40.) In 
youth we find him questioning and expounding to the 
rabbis in the temple and "increasing in stature and in 
wisdom and in favor with God and man." His won- 
derful knowledge, his amazing questions and his dis- 
cerning answers to the elders must have become more 
and more accentuated during the passage of these 
early years, and we may gather that Mary had already 
premonitions of the future career of her Divine Son, 
since she pondered over and "hid all these things in 
her heart." There are indications that seem to war- 
rant the conclusion that long before the opening of 
his public ministry, Jesus was absorbed by the thought! 
of the mission to which he was destined. He knew 
his Father's business and did it, and he frequented 



211 Difficult Bible Questions 

his Father's house. His life and surroundings in 
Nazareth brought him in contact with a simple, earnest 
people and with sorrow and suffering. These were 
years of character-building and development. They 
bore fruit when the time was ripe for his public minis- 
try and prepared him for the baptism at John's hands. 
This was the last act of his private life and the first 
that marked the beginning of his public mission, when 
the heavenly voice proclaimed him as the "Beloved 
Son" and the Baptist bare record that he was the Son 
of God. 

211. Why Is Christ Described As a High Priest 
After the Order of Melchizedek? 

The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, whether 
Paul or some other person, was showing the superiority 
of Christianity to Judaism. It too had its priest and 
sacrifice. The Jew might answer that Christ could 
not be a high priest as he did not come of the tribe of 
Levi, to which the priesthood was confined. The 
answer is that there was another order of priesthood — 
that of Melchizedek, which Abraham recognized (Gen. 
14 :2o) by paying him tithes. Christ belonged to that 
order as the Psalmist had predicted (Ps. 110:4), an( i 
Levi, through his ancestor, had thus indicated his 
superiority. It is an argument that would have weight 
with a Jew. It is a curious fact, that among the 
recently discovered Tel el-Amarna tablets, are letters 
from one Ebed-tob, King of Uru Salim (Jerusalem), 
who describes himself as not having received the 
crown by inheritance from father or mother, but from 
the mighty God. We know nothing of Melchizedek 
beyond the scanty references in Genesis, but this tablet 



Jesus' Life and Death 212-213 

appears to intimate that the ancient Kings of Jerusa- 
lem claimed this divine right. 

212. As God, How Could Jesus be Weary, Hun- 

gry and Thirsty? 

In his divinity, no ; but in his humanity he could be 
all of these. Scripture tells us that in his human 
aspect he was "in all things as we are." What we 
have in the Gospels is the report by his hearers of 
what he said. As John tells us (21:25), it is a very 
imperfect and meagre report, but sufficient for the 
purpose the writers had in view. At the same time, 
it is doubtful how much of the Godhead Jesus may 
voluntarily have laid aside when he became man. Paul 
says (Phil. 2\J, R. V.) that "he emptied himself," 
from which we infer that ... order fully to enter into 
human feeling he divested himself of such qualities as 
would have kept him from feeling hunger, etc. It 
behooved him to be made in all things like unto his 
brethren, and he could not be that unless he temporarily 
relinquished some portion of his divinity. 

213, Why Was Jesus Baptized? 

The Saviour evidently ranked baptism as one of 
the acts inseparable from his Messianic calling (see 
John 1:31). By being publicly baptized he entered 
into John's community, which was introductory to 
his greater Messianic work. Further, it w T as the means 
of revealing himself to the Baptist and through him to 
the people. John was the forerunner of the Messiah, 
and it was especially fitting that he should personally 
serve at Jesus' consecration to his Messianic work, 
and assist at the beginning of his public career. 



214-216 Difficult Bible Questions 

214. Did Christ Make Wine at the Cana Feast 

or Was It Grape Juice? 

The fact that the ruler of the feast pronounced the 
miraculous wine "the best," showed that it was really 
wine, but we are not justified in concluding that it was 
alcoholic or intoxicating. There has been endless dis- 
cussion on this point, but we are satisfied that divine 
power never gave any gift to man that would degrade 
or hurt him. 

215. What Was Jesus' First Sermon? 

Luke tells us (Luke 3:23) that Jesus was about 
thirty years of age when he began his ministry. Dur- 
ing his sojourn in Galilee (chap. 4, v. 14) he had al- 
ready spoken in the synagogues. Mark 1 :i4, 15 men- 
tions these instances, though very briefly, and so also 
does John 2:11. His first recorded sermon is men- 
tioned in Luke 4:16-28. It was on the Sabbath day, 
and he took his text from the prophet Esais. He had 
passed through his forty days' preparatory vigil in 
the wilderness and was filled with the Spirit, and ready 
for his work. 

216. Did Christ Sing Any Hymns? 

While there is no record of such a thing in Scrip- 
ture, or anywhere else, it does not seem improbable. 
See the passage in Matt. 26 130 and Mark 14 126. The 
closing hymn here referred to was probably the chant 
called by the Jews "the great Hallel," and which con- 
sists of parts of Psalms 115, 116, 117 and 118, these 
parts being sung at the close of the Passover. "It is 
hardly conceivable," writes one commentator, "that 



Jesus' Life and Death 217-218 

the eleven disciples should have been singing to cheer 
their sorrowing hearts and that their Lord should have 
stood silent beside them." 

217. Was Jesus Really Tempted As We Are? 

Unquestionably he submitted to all the liabilities of 
the human condition; we are told expressly that he 
"was in all things as we are." The appeal of the 
tempter was to his ambition, and the purpose, as some 
commentators conclude, was to excite in his mind the 
desire for worldly power and dominion. Even his own 
followers had cherished visions of an earthly kingdom. 
The question whether he could by any possibility have 
yielded has often been asked, but it is one that must 
remain unanswered. To say that it was impossible 
would imply that he was not wholly subject to human 
conditions and temptations ; while to admit its possi- 
bility would make him less than divine. The incident 
shows to us that while the vision of sudden power may 
have been alluring, it could not move him from the 
fixed and beneficent purpose of his great mission, 
which was to establish his kingdom in the hearts of 
men by love and sacrifice, and by the example of his 
perfect humanity. Contrasted with such a kingdom, 
all the glory of worldly pomp and power are trivial, 
transient and unsatisfying. 

218. Could Jesus Sin? 

The Christian Church has always held that Christ 
was absolutely free from sin. This is in accordance 
with the explicit teachings of Scripture, which states 
that he was in all things "as we are, yet without sin." 
(Heb. 4:15.) He is also described as the Holy One, 



219 Difficult Bible Questions 

the Just and Righteous (Acts 3:14, 22:14; I Peter 
3:18; I John 2:29, 3:7). See also I Peter 11:21, 22; 
I Peter 1 :ig; II Cor. 5 :2i and other passages. One of 
the earliest of Church councils (A. D. 451) formulated 
the doctrine of his sinlessness thus : "Truly man, 
with a rational soul and body, with like essence with 
us as to his manhood, and in all things like us, with 
sin excepted," and this has remained unchanged as 
the accepted Christological doctrine of the Christian 
Church. Whether he could not sin has been much 
discussed. Doubtless he could have yielded; but 
the fact remains that he did not yield to temp- 
tation and continued to the end an example of 
perfect purity and sinlessness — the condition of man 
before his fall. 

219. Did Satan Own the Kingdoms Which He 
Offered in the Temptation? 

No; Satan did not own them. But it is still true 
that they were in his hands to offer to Christ ; he had 
usurped them. At Creation, Man was placed in the 
Garden of Eden as lord over all. "Thou hast put all 
things under his feet," was true of the first Adam (see 
Ps. 8:4-9), while it will only be carried out perma- 
nently under the second Adam. (See I Cor. 15:25; 
Eph. 1 :22; Heb. 2:6-9.) But when Adam listened to 
Satan and fell, he transferred his allegiance, and 
through that Satan became the "prince of this world." 
(See John 14:30; 16:11 ,-18:36; Luke 22:53; II Cor. 
4:4). The consequence of this has been that the em- 
pires of the world have been truly delineated as wild 
beasts. (Dan. 7:3.) It was universal empire Satan 






Jesus' Life and Death 219 

offered to Jesus, but which he refused to take from his 
hand. When Satan said, "to whomsoever I will I give 
it" (Luke 4:6), the Lord did not deny it, but was 
content to go on in the path of obedience until the 
time should come for the Father to give it to him. 
(Matt. 11:27.) Then "the kingdoms of this world 
shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his 
Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 
11 -.15). The fact that "the powers that be are ordained 
of God" Rom. 13:1, does not conflict with this. God 
did put authority in the hands of Noah, Gen. 9 :6, but 
this has been usurped by Satan, through the willing- 
ness of man to be led by him. The fact that the devil 
has so much to do with the affairs of men in the world 
is a proof of this. On the other hand, the kingdoms 
and glory of the world were not his to give. He has 
no valid claim or right to anything in God's material 
universe. "The earth is the Lord's and the fulness 
thereof." The temptation of Christ in the wilderness, 
according to the best critical authorities was of a 
subjective character. That is to say, it was a mental 
appeal to do wrong. It was a phantasy, a deception, a 
sham. This is the way Satan tempts us, and Christ 
was in all points tempted as we are. Satan does not 
need to take us up on a high mountain to show us the 
kingdoms of the world. He can put a mental picture 
before us. When we are tempted to do as he bids us 
and think that certain things will come to pass, we 
soon discover that the devil has deceived us. When he 
speaketh a lie he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar, 
and the father of lies. His tempting promises of glory, 
greatness and prosperity are all false. Obedience to 
him, in the end only pierces the soul with many sor- 



220-221 Difficult Bible Questions 

rows. He makes the thief believe that his acts will 
never be known. But God says, "Be sure your sin 
will find you out." The sensualist, who gratifies his 
lust, in the end becomes a moral leper. Lastly, he 
makes the sinner believe a lie that he may be eternally 
ruined. 

220. What Became of the Nine Lepers Who 

Did Not Return After Being Cleansed? 

The inference to be drawn from the Gospel narrative 
(Luke 17:11-19) is that the nine, being healed merely 
in body, were so elated and overjoyed with their new- 
found health that they ungratefully forgot the source 
of their restoration, whereas the one leper who re- 
turned, had learned the deeper lesson of Christ's divin- 
ity, and had experienced that inner cleansing and 
clearness of spiritual vision which, after the first 
exuberant outburst was over, brought him back grate- 
ful and loving to the Saviour's feet to pour out his 
thanks. The nine are not again mentioned. 

221. In What Kind of a Body Did Moses Ap- 

pear at the Transfiguration? 

Probably the spiritual body, to which Paul refers 
(I Cor. 15:44). It is difficult for us to conceive of 
such a body because we are so accustomed to recognize 
the soul only as it manifests itself through the senses. 
But it would be rash to conclude that the soul is de- 
pendent on the physical senses for its powers. It may 
have, or may acquire after the death of the body, new 
and perhaps superior means of communicating thought 
and feeling. 



Jesus' Life and Death 222-223 

222. Were There Two Anointments by Two Dif- 

ferent Marys, She of Bethany and Mary 
Magdalene? 

There have been many conflicting interpretations of 
the Scripture narrative concerning Mary of Bethany 
and the woman spoken of in Luke 7 137. The majority 
agree that there were two anointings, one during 
Jesus' Galilean ministry (Luke 7), the other at Beth- 
any before the last entry into Jerusalem (Matt. 26, 
Mark 14, John 12). There is not the slightest trace 
in the Scripture story of any blot on the life of Mary 
of Bethany. The epithet, Magdalene, seems to have 
been chosen for the especial purpose of distinguishing 
the one to whom it was applied from other Marys. 
Mary or Maryam was a common name, which seems 
to have led to misunderstanding. Some of the earliest 
Church writers entirely reject the identification of the 
two Marys, although it is an error into which not a 
few have fallen. It is to be noted that Luke 7:37 
speaks of a woman "which was a sinner," but gives no 
name, while Luke 10:38, 39 speaks of Mary and 
Martha as though neither had been named before and 
without any evidence of previous reference. The 
whole question is one concerning which no one can 
speak with final authority although the reasonable 
inference is, as we have said, that they were different 
individuals. 

223. What Prayer Did Our Saviour Ask at the 

Last Supper? 

The words Jesus employed are not recorded, but 
the blessing pronounced may have been that which 
was customarily asked by the head of the household 



224 Difficult Bible Questions 

at all Hebrew paschal feasts. It is in these words: 
"Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the 
universe, who hast created the fruit of the vine! 
Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the uni- 
verse, who hast chosen us above all nations, and exalted 
us above all peoples, and hast sanctified us with thy 
commandments. Thou hast given us, O Lord our God, 
appointed seasons for joy, festivals and holy days for 
rejoicing, such as the feast of unleavened bread, the 
time of our liberation, for holy convocation, to com- 
memorate our exodus from Egypt." As Jesus gave to 
the Last Supper a broader spiritual significance than 
the Passover possessed, it is probable that he gave to 
the opening words of blessing a character in keeping 
with his high purpose. The new Passover was not to 
be for the Jewish nation alone, but for the whole 
world. 

224. Was Judas at the Institution of the Lord's 
Supper? 

It is doubtful whether Judas was present at the 
institution of the Lord's Supper. He was present at 
the foot-washing and at the early part of the feast, 
but he could not remain after Christ spoke of his 
imminent betrayal and showed his knowledge of the 
identity of the guilty man. Then Judas went out, but 
we do not know whether the breaking of the bread 
and the blessing of the cup had already taken place: 
from Luke's narrative it would appear that they had ; 
Matthew and Mark, however, mention the ceremony 
after the conversation about the betrayal, which would 
imply that Judas was not present at the ceremony. 
The Evangelists were concerned more about the spirit- 



Jesus' Life and Death 225-226 

ual significance of the events of that agitating night 
than about presenting those events in consecutive 
order. 

225. What Was the Value of the Thirty Pieces 

of Silver That Judas Received? 

The pieces of silver were probably shekels. The 
value of the whole sum in our modern reckoning was 
about eighteen dollars. Zechariah had predicted the 
whole transaction (see Zech. 11:12, 13): "They 
weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver and the 
Lord said cast it unto the potter/' etc. It is not likely 
that Judas acted from avarice only, though he was 
fond of money. He probably meant to force Christ's 
hand. He may have thought him backward in claim- 
ing the kingdom, and supposed that if he was driven 
to bay, he would deliver himself by a miracle and 
declare himself king. That theory is confirme 1 by his 
committing suicide when he discovered the conse- 
quences of his act. 

226. How Did the Sleeping Disciples Know 

What Word Jesus Uttered in the Garden? 

One of the functions of the Holy Spirit was to 
bring all things to the remembrance or knowledge of 
the Apostles. Though the Evangelists record most 
fully the events they witnessed, they record other mat- 
ters of which they could have had no knowledge 
except by revelation. This may have been one of 
them. But it is not stated that they slept all the time 
they were with Christ in the Garden. The account 
rather implies men struggling to keep awake. Christ 
said of them that their spirit was willing. They may 

10 



227-228 Difficult Bible Questions 

have heard the few words they record, though missing 
the remainder of what may have been, and probably 
was, a long prayer. 

227. Who Was the "Certain Young Man" of 

Mark 14:51? 

There has been much speculation as to who this 
young man was. It has been suggested by some com- 
mentators, perhaps rightly, that inasmuch as he is 
mentioned only by Mark, he was Mark, the evangelist ; 
himself. Mark's family was prominently connected with 
incidents of the Lord's last days and following the 
resurrection. Thus the "upper room" where the Last 
Supper was eaten and which later witnessed the de- 
scent of the Holy Spirit was in the ownership of that 
family and Mark's mother was the sister of Barnabas, 
a wealthy Levite of Cypress. 

228. Was the Pain the Saviour Suffered on 

Calvary Physical or Mental? 

Pain is a difficult thing to measure. The sorrow 
of Jesus will always be one of the awe-inspiring, 
baffling events of the world story. It is impossible to 
read the Bible deeply, particularly after one has 
become personally acquainted with Jesus and observed 
the amazing power that the facts of his suffering and 
death possess over human souls, without realizing that 
there must have been far deeper anguish than can be 
accounted for by the mere facts of his humiliation, 
rejection, torture and death. If we consider the merely 
physical pain we must acknowledge that others have 
apparently borne as much, though we must also ac- 
knowledge that there are almost infinite degrees of 



Jesus' Life and Death 228 

susceptibility to pain. A wound which will cause little 
pain to a man of a certain temperament and organiza- 
tion may be excruciating to one of finer and more acute 
sensitiveness. But the real agony of Jesus must have 
been different from either physical or mental. There 
is a sane note, a moral note in his suffering that puts 
it altogether beyond our comprehension. Matthew, 
Mark and Luke all record the fact that as he died he 
cried out with a loud voice. That seems strange from 
what we know of the dauntless courage of Jesus. Some 
immeasurable, inconceivable suffering must lie back 
of that cry. So also his appeal in the garden for 
deliverance at the last hour. There must have been 
an infinite anguish ahead to compel him to ask for 
another way. We get the clearest hint in the grievous 
prayer from the cross: "My God, my God, why hast 
thou forsaken me?" There must have been some 
definite, conscious, agonizing break in the eternal love 
which had bound the Father and the Son together. 
Perhaps there was deeper truth than the ancient for- 
mulators of the creed knew in those strange words: 
"He descended into hell." No — of all the griefs in the 
world that of Jesus while he was on the cross and 
while his body lay in the grave, is unique. Its depth, 
its duration, none can know. They counted the hours 
he spent on the cross and the hours in the grave. But 
what eternities of spirit anguish he underwent we may 
never know. But, praise God! they were enough to 
shock every penitent soul that hears of it into a new 
life, a life in which sin is hated and righteousness 
loved, a life of which the crucified and risen Saviour 
is the eternal Light and the never-failing hope and 
joy. 



229-230 Difficult Bible Questions 

229. Why Was the Inscription Used on the 

Cross "The King of the Jews"? 

From the fact that the evangelists give us three 
different forms for the inscription over the cross it 
has been argued that they were not accurate in their 
portrayal of things and events. There is, however, 
nothing here to disturb anyone. Matthew 27:37 has 
it, "This is Jesus the King of the Jews," using proba- 
bly the Greek form ; St. Mark 25 126, "The King of 
the Jews," and Luke 23 138, "This is the King of the 
Jews," availed themselves of the Roman form, and 
John 19:19, "Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the 
Jews," probably employed the Hebrew form. Since 
the four accounts of the inscription do not differ in 
import the exact language of the insulting designation 
is of little or no consequence. 

230. How Many Hours Was Jesus on the Cross? 

It is uncertain how long Jesus lived after he was 
nailed to the cross. At the longest it could not have 
been more than six hours. Mark says (15:25), "It 
was the third hour (or nine o'clock), and they crucified 
him"; and again (15:34), "And at the ninth hour 
(3 p. m.), Jesus cried/' etc. John, on the other hand, 
describing the proceedings before Pilate (19:14), 
says: "It was about the sixth hour." But John was 
probably reckoning the hours by the Roman method 
from midnight, which, allowing for the subsequent 
judicial farce and the journey to Golgotha, would 
bring him into accord with Mark. Matthew also 
(27:46), represents Jesus as being alive at the ninth 
hour (three o'clock). Matthew, Mark and Luke, 



Jesus' Life and Death 231-232 

referring to the darkness, say that it lasted from the 
sixth hour (noon), till the ninth hour (3 p.m.), but 
it does not appear to have begun until Jesus had been 
some time on the cross. , The ancients had not the 
means that we have of accurately reckoning time; 
so that we cannot be certain of the hour, and it may 
have been later than nine when Jesus was nailed to 
the cross. He evidently did not live long after three, 
probably not many minutes. 

231- At What Hour Did the Crucifixion Take 
Place? 

Mark says (15:25) it was about the third hour, or, 
as we should say, nine o'clock. Again, the sixth hour 
is referred to by three of the evangelists (Matt. 27:45 ; 
Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44), when Jesus had apparent- 
ly been three hours on the cross. In the next verses, 
in all three cases, the ninth hour is mentioned as the 
time of death, which would be three o'clock. The 
statement of John (19:14) is believed to be due to a 
copyist's error, or to his using the Roman method of 
reckoning. 

232. Was Jesus Happy on His Way to the 
Cross ? 

We cannot suppose so, although some have held 
that, because he was doing the Father's will, therefore 
he must have been happy even in the midst of suffer- 
ing. But in the narratives of the evangelists we find 
only the impression that he was filled with sorrow. 
From the time of the agony in the garden (see Matt. 
26:37) till the last cry on the cross, this cloud was 
not lifted. On the way to Calvary, together with his 
sorrow for the people who "knew not what they did" 



233 Difficult Bible Questions 

— who were now as ready to mock and revile him as 
they were only a short time before to joyfully acclaim 
him — there must have been a deeper burden of sad- 
ness for his base betrayal and for his utter desertion 
by all of his panic-stricken disciples, even by Peter, 
that weighed down at every step. Yet, wounded, 
bleeding, and subjected to the worst indignities, he 
bore it all without a murmur even while his heart was 
breaking. He was sustained by the sense of his high 
mission and bore his suffering with such fortitude that 
even his enemies remarked it (Luke 23:47). Thus, 
to the last moments of his earthly life, he was "a man 
of sorrows and acquainted with grief/' 

233. Who Were the More Guilty of Christ's 
Death, the Jews or the Romans? 

Both were guilty, although the onus of the malev- 
olent persecution of Christ rests with the Jews. When 
they brought him before Pilate and that official, al- 
though representing the power of Rome, and even 
admitting that he could "find no fault" in Jesus weakly 
yielded to the fanatical clamor for the sacrifice, he 
became a principal with a full share of responsibility 
for the tragedy that followed. A stronger man, backed 
by the Roman authority and convinced of the injustice 
of the mob's demand, would have resolutely refused 
to permit the innocent to suffer. History is full of 
passages recording the nobility and justice of men 
whose firmness checked the commission of crimes in 
the name of law. Roman justice, even in that day, 
was proverbial. It was therefore the duty of Pilate 
to have executed justice as Governor of Judea. When 
he had examined Christ and declared that he "found 



Jesus' Life and Death 234 

no fault in him" (John 19:6), and again when he de- 
clined to acknowledge responsibility for the "blood of 
this just person," he was pledged by his judicial oaths 
to execute not injustice in obedience to clamor, but 
justice, even in the face of the whole Jewish nation. 
Roman laws governed Judea ; the native laws, secular 
and ecclesiastical, could only be recognized and en- 
forced where they did not conflict with those of Rome. 
Pilate stifled the voice of conscience, set aside the re- 
sult of his judicial inquiry, disregarded the warning 
of his wife, and basely consented to a murder in obe- 
dience to Jewish clamor. The priests, it is true never 
wavered in their demand for the Saviour's death, and 
even warned Pilate that if he refused to order the exe- 
cution he would not be Caesar's friend. This touched 
the Governor's weak point: his ambition. To stand 
well with Caesar he gratified the populace and ordered 
his troops to carry out their wishes. 

234. What Became of Pilate After He Judged 
Jesus ? 

There are various legends and traditions concerning 
Pilate's further history. The Acta Pilati, an apocry- 
phal work still extant, contains some of these. One 
tradition is to the effect that the Emperor Tiberius, 
alarmed at the universal darkness which had suddenly 
fallen on his empire upon the day of the crucifixion, 
summoned Pilate to Rome to answer for having caused 
it. Pilate was condemned to death, but pleaded ignor- 
ance as his excuse. His wife died at the moment of 
his execution. Another tradition is that Tiberius, hav- 
ing heard of Christ's miracles, wrote to Pilate bidding 
him send Jesus to Rome. Pilate was compelled to 



235-236 Difficult Bible Questions 

confess that he had crucified him, and was thrown into 
prison and committed suicide. Earth and sea refused 
to receive his body, and it was repeatedly cast up, 
finally being sunk in a pool at Lucerne, under the 
shadow of Mount Pilatus. Josephus, the Jewish his- 
torian (in Antiquities, 18 chap. 4:1), states au- 
thoritatively that Pilate met with political disaster. 
The Samaritans complained against him to Vitellius, 
president of Syria, who sent Pilate to Rome to answer 
to Caligula, the successor of Tiberius, and he soon af- 
terward killed himself. The scene of this act is 
uncertain. 

235. Could Pilate Have Done Other than Con- 

demn Jesus to Death? 

Yes, as Pilate told Jesus (John 19:10), he had 
power to release him. His difficulty lay in his own 
bad record. If he refused to oblige the Jews in this 
matter, they might go to Rome and accuse him before 
the Emperor of many acts of misgovernment. It 
would have done him no harm for them to complain 
of his letting Jesus go. In that matter, his defense 
that the prisoner was innocent, would have been suffi- 
cient. But they would probably say nothing about 
Jesus ; they would bring charges against him for which 
he had no defense and he would lose his office. He 
concluded that he could not afford to set them at 
defiance, although he ought to have done so. 

236. Could Christ Have Come Down from the 

Cross ? 

Christ had done many miracles, as when he healed 
the blind, stilled the storm and raised the dead. His 



Jesus' Life and Death 237-238 

remark to Peter (Matt. 26:53) that his Father would 
give him twelve legions of angels if he asked for 
deliverance, showed that he believed he could be deliv- 
ered if he wished. The only reason why he had no 
desire to come down from the cross was that love of 
the human race held him there. He knew that his 
voluntary sacrifice was essential to the great atone- 
ment for the sins of the world. He had foreseen his 
own death on the cross and on several occasions had 
spoken of it. 

237. How Many Appearances Are Recorded of 

Christ After His Resurrection? 

Ten: 1 Mark 16:9-11; John 20:11-18; 2 Matt. 
28:8-10; Mark 16:8; Luke 24:9-11; 3 Luke 24:34; 
4 Mark 16:12, 13; Luke 24 -.13-35 5 5 Mark 16:14; Luke 
24:36-49; John 20:19-23; 6 John 20:24-29; 7 Matt 
28:16-20; Mark 16:15-18; 8 John 21:1-24; 9 Matt. 
28:16; 10 Acts 1 :3-8. 

238. Christ's Garments— Where Did He Get 

Those Which He Wore when He Ap- 
peared to Mary on Resurrection Morn? 

The question has often been asked, but never satis- 
factorily answered. We must conclude, in the absence 
of any Scriptural statement about the garments, that 
they belonged to that strange mysterious life on which 
Christ entered when he rose from the dead. That 
they were not of the ordinary materials seems clear 
from the Gospel narratives, which represent Christ as 
"vanishing out of their sight" (Luke 24 131), appearing 
among his disciples in a room the doors of which were 
shut (John 20:19), and being seen now at Jerusalem, 



239-240 Difficult Bible Questions 

now at Emmaus, and in Galilee, at least forty miles 
distant. Whatever the garments were, and whereso- 
ever they came from, they were clearly not of the sub- 
stantial kind, which would have prevented these dis- 
appearances. 

239. In What Body Did Jesus Appear After 

the Resurrection? 

The language of Luke 24:39 is clear and explicit. 
The resurrection body proved that Jesus was "the 
Son of God with power" in taking to himself the 
same identical body which had been crucified and 
laid in the grave, and yet which had been glorified 
"by some such inscrutable change as took place at 
the transfiguration." The very fact attests him as the 
Master of life and death and as divine. He continued 
forty days on earth after the resurrection, taking 
again to himself that life which he had laid down, in 
order that his followers and the whole world might be 
convinced of the completeness of his triumph over the 
grave and that he had not "seen corruption." He 
ascended to heaven a spiritual body. (Phil. 3:21, 
Col. 3 4.) 

240. How Long Was Jesus in the Grave? 

In Matthew 12 40 he said that he would be three 
days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The 
passage has long perplexed Biblical students. The 
most probable explanation is that Christ adopted a 
mode of expression common among the Jews, and said 
that he should be in the grave three "evening-morn- 
ings," which the translators rendered three days and 
nights. The Jews also had a rule, of which there are 



Jesus' Life and Death 241 

several examples in other parts of the Bible, that any 
part of the onah, or period, counted as the whole. 
Thus the interval between the crucifixion and the burial 
on the Friday would be part of Friday, and would 
count as one "evening-morning" ; from sunset on Fri- 
day to sunset on Saturday would count as the second ; 
and from Saturday sunset to the resurrection on Sun- 
day morning as the third. The disciples evidently 
regarded the Sunday as the third day, as is seen by 
the conversation on the way to Emmaus, when Cleopas 
said: "This is the third day since these things were 
done." (Luke 24:21.) 

Professor Wescott, a great New Testament scholar 
and one of the editors of the most widely used text 
of the Greek New Testament, held the view that cru- 
cifixion and burial occurred on Thursday ; but practi- 
cally every other authority disagrees with him. The 
celebration of Friday as the day of our Lord's death 
and burial dates back to extremely early times in 
Church history. It is true that the expression "three 
days and three nights" in the passage you mention 
sounds very emphatic to our Western ears, accus- 
tomed to the sharp distinction conveyed by the words 
in our time and speech. But, as Dr. Whedon com- 
ments here, "the Jews reckoned the entire twenty-four 
hours in an unbroken piece as a night-and-day. They 
counted the odd fragment of a day, in computation, as 
an entire night-and-day. Our Lord, therefore, was 
dead during three night-and-days." 

241. Did Jesus Die of a Broken Heart? 

That is the opinion of many who have written on 
the subject, physicians included. It is certain that the 



242 Difficult Bible Questions 

crucifixion did not kill him, as that was a death by 
exhaustion. Jesus was not exhausted, for we are told 
(Matt. 27:50) that he "cried with a loud voice" when 
he yielded up the ghost. The fact that when the sol- 
dier pierced his side there came thereout blood and 
water (John 19:34) indicates, according to eminent 
surgeons, that the heart was ruptured. The most 
probable way of accounting for the blood and water 
flowing from a wound in the side of a dead body is 
that the spear pierced the pericardium — or sac which 
contains the heart—which would contain blood and 
water if the heart were ruptured. The severe strain 
in the Garden the night before, the intensity of which 
was indicated by a sweat of blood, probably prepared 
the physical nature of Jesus for the sudden collapse, 
which caused Pilate to "marvel that he was dead 
already." (Mark 15:44.) 

242. Why Did They Cast Lot for Christ's 
Garment ? 

When the soldiers cast lot for the Saviour's gar- 
ment (John 19:24) they had no design to fulfill a 
prediction of the Old Testament. They had probably 
never heard of the prophecy. They simply perceived 
that if they tore the garment into four pieces they 
would spoil it, and it would be of no value. It was 
the most natural course for such men to cast lots for 
it. The evangelist, in writing that it was done "that 
the Scripture might be fulfilled" meant that in God's 
providence the fulfilment took place. The soldiers were 
unconsciously doing the thing that it was predicted 
they would do. John was anxious to show that Christ 



Jesus' Life and Death 243-244 

was the predicted Messiah, and he mentions this inci- 
dent to show that the details of the prophetic writings 
were fulfilled in him. 

243. Why Did Jesus After His Resurrection 

Say: "Touch Me Not"? 

It was not a time for the old familiar greeting or 
handclaspings. He had not come to renew the former 
human associations with his followers. A great change 
had taken place. The crown of his life-work was not 
yet complete. He must show himself in his resurrected 
body to his disciples before he ascends to the Father. 
Mary evidently comprehended the significance of the 
change and went and told the disciples. 

244. Was the Ascension in Human Form? 

The visible resurrection was essential as a demon- 
stration of his victory over death. The facts of the 
ascension are so well authenticated in numerous pas- 
sages, that they are accepted by all denominations of 
the Christian Church. It was a bodily ascension, visi- 
ble to the multitudes, as far as human eye could pen- 
etrate. What change may have occurred in the spirit- 
ualizing of his body, in its preparation for his place on 
God's right hand, we may only conjecture. The best 
commentators hold that "though Christ rose with the 
same body in which he died, it acquired, either at his 
resurrection or at his ascension, and without the loss 
of identity, the attributes of a spiritual body, as dis- 
tinguished from a natural body; of an incorruptible, 
as distinguished from a corruptible, body." See Phil. 
3:21; Col. 3:4. 



245-246 Difficult Bible Questions 

245. What Were the Characteristics of Jesus 

That Made Him So Worthy of Follow- 
ing? 

He was altogether lovely, Song of Solomon 5:16; 
holy, righteous, good, faithful, true, just, guileless 
and sinless, spotless, innocent, harmless (Luke 1:35; 
Acts 4:27; Is. 53:11; Matt. 19:16; Is. 11:5; John 
1:14; John 7:18; Zee. 9:9; John 5:30; Is. 53:9; I Pet. 
2\22\ John 8:46; I Pet. 1:19; Matt. 27:4). He was 
forgiving, Luke 23 :34; merciful, Heb. 2 :iy, and loving, 
John 13:1, 15:13; compassionate and benevolent, Is. 
40:11; Luke 19:41; Matt. 4:23, 24; Acts 10:38. He 
was meek, lowly in heart; patient, humble and long 
suffering, Matt. 1 1 :29, 27 :i4 ; I Tim. 1:16; Luke 22 '.27. 
Though zealous, he was resigned, resisted temptation 
and was obedient to God the Father, even as he had 
been subject to his parents in his youth (Luke 2:49, 
22:42; John 4:34, 15:10; Luke 2:57). 

246. Why Is Jesus Sometimes Called the Son 

of Man and Sometimes the Son of God ? 

It is held that Jesus, in applying to himself the title 
Son of Man, intended to emphasize his humanity and 
his representative character. The Jews were looking 
for a Messiah who would raise Israel to the head of 
the nations ; Jesus wished to impress the disciples with 
the fact that he was representative of the whole hu- 
man race and not of the Jews only. Then, too, to 
have spoken openly of himself as the Son of God 
would have been at once to exasperate the Jews and 
bring upon himself a charge of blasphemy, as in the 
end it did (see John 10:36). The title, Son of Man, 



Jesus' Life and Death 246 

was not open to that danger, as it was expressive of 
lowliness, humility and identification with humanity. 
In using it, however, Jesus did not withdraw his claim 
to be the Son of God. When the High Priest put him 
on his oath (see Matt. 26:63-65) he acknowledged 
that he was the Son of God 



247-248 



JESUS— SAYINGS OF JESUS 



247. The Meaning of the Name "Jesus." 

The name "Jesus" is the name by which the Saviour 
is preferably known in the Gospels. "Christ" is used 
as a proper name in the Epistles, but in the Gospels, 
except in rare instances, such as Matt, i :i ; Mark i :i ; 
Luke ii :ii ; John i :i/, there is found not the familiar 
"Christ" but "The Christ." The later combination of 
the two names, "Jesus Christ," is found only in John 
(John 17:3) and after the resurrection (Acts 2:38, 
3 :6). "Jesus" is the Greek form of the Hebrew name 
"Jehoshua," or in its abbreviated form "Joshua." Its 
variants are found in "Jeshua" and "Hoshea." "Jesus" 
means Deliverer and the divine selection of the name 
is indicated in Matt. 1 :2i — "He shall save his people 
from their sins." 



248. In What Language Did Christ Speak? 

The common language of Palestine at that time 
was Aramaic, a Syro-Chaldaic dialect. After the 
Babylonian captivity it supplanted the original He- 
brew, although the latter continued in use for ecclesi- 
astical documents. It is reasonable to believe that 
Christ used the Aramaic, as the people would not 
have understood him had he spoken any other lan- 
guage. Matthew is commonly believed to have been 
written in Aramaic and the other three in Greek. The 
commercial and literary language of the day was 
Greek. Neither Luke nor John was an uneducated 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 249 

man. Both would be likely to know Greek. Mark, 
too, as a young Jew of some standing, would probably 
know the language. 

249. Why Have We Differing Versions of the 
Lord's Prayer? 

There is no absolute evidence that the prayer was 
taught on one occasion only. Matthew reports it as 
given during the Sermon on the Mount, and Luke 
(who was not one of the twelve) places its delivery 
after the close of the Galilean ministry, but mentioning 
no time or place. Many of the best scholars regard the 
position of the prayer in Matthew as unhistorical and 
give the preference to Luke, although it by no means 
follows that even he gives the original form. If deliv- 
ered on more than one occasion, the prayer may have 
had one form for a small group of disciples, and an- 
other form for the whole body of Jesus' followers. 
And this might account for the presence of a clause in 
one version which was absent in the other. The word 
"trespasses" may be regarded simply as a variant. 
Furthermore, it is conjectured that Luke made certain 
changes in the expressions of the prayer, to make its 
meaning clearer to Gentile hearers. Cyril, Bishop of 
Jerusalem, is the first w r riter who expressly mentions 
the use of the Lord's Prayer in religious worship, but 
it was not generally used in Christian churches during 
the early days. There is no evidence that it was em- 
ployed by the apostles. Luke omits the closing doxol- 
ogy, and although it appears in Matthew's Gospel as 
we now have it, it is not to be found in any of the 
early manuscripts, and is probably an interpolation due 
to liturgical use. 

11 



250-252 Difficult Bible Questions 

250. Does Any Parallel to the Lord's Prayer 

Exist? 

Some commentators have claimed that the Prayer 
is based upon expressions and sentiments already fa- 
miliar to the Jews, and that parallel phrases may be 
found in the Talmud, but this does not detract from 
its beauty and originality as a whole. 

251. What Is Implied in Jesus 9 Words "See the 

Son of Man Coming in His Kingdom"? 

This passage is frequently misunderstood. Mark 
has the better version: "Till they see the Kingdom 
of God come with power" (which is the more ex- 
plicit), and Luke: "Till they see the Kingdom." Jesus 
is believed to have had reference to the realization of 
the firm establishment and victorious progress of the 
new Kingdom of Christ during the lifetime of some 
then present. He did not refer here to his second 
coming, but to the founding and triumphant extension 
of that work, the acceptance of which by the world 
was to be the grand pledge of his return. 

252. What Is Meant by "Poor in Spirit"? 

The simple meaning of this passage (Matt. 5:3) is 
that it is the humble soul that gets blessed. And the 
higher a saint gets in the divine life the more humble 
he will be. Spiritual progress which is not accompanied 
by humility is progress in the wrong direction. This 
is one of the distinctive points of Christ's doctrine ; at 
the very threshold of the Christian life the Christian 
gives up his self-confidence; he surrenders all hope 
of making himself righteous, and gives himself to 
Christ to be made righteous. And his highest attain- 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 253-254 

ment can be expressed in the words of Paul: "I am 
crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live, yet not I, 
but Christ liveth in me. 5 ' 

253, Did Jesus Abrogate the Law? 

In Matt. 5:17-20 Jesus was explaining that he did 
not come to abrogate but to fulfil the law — to unfold 
its true spiritual meaning. In verse 19, the thing 
spoken of, as commentators explain, is not "the prac- 
tical breaking or disobeying of the law, but annulling 
or enervating its obligation by a vicious system of 
interpretation and teaching others to do the same; 
so the thing threatened is not exclusion from heaven 
and still less the lowest place in it, but a degraded and 
contemptuous position in the present stage of the 
kingdom of God — in other words, they shall be re- 
duced, by the retributive providence that overtakes 
them, to the same condition of dishonor to which their 
false system of teaching has brought down the eternal 
principles of God's law." On the other hand, those 
who so teach that they exalt and honor God's au- 
thority, shall be honored in the kingdom in due pro- 
portion. It is therefore a rebuke to the outward and 
formal righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, 
who neglect the inward, vital and spiritual. 

254. What Is Meant by "Whosoever Therefore 

Shall Break One of These Least Com- 
mandments" ? 

The meaning of the passage in Matt. 5 :ig is : Who- 
soever shall break, or make invalid through deliberate 
misinterpretation, one of the least of these command- 
ments and shall teach men so (as the Pharisees were 



255 Difficult Bible Questions 

doing), shall be called the least in the kingdom of 
heaven. The penalty was not exclusion from heaven, 
but the loss of the position of honor in God's kingdom, 
which they might have enjoyed. On the other hand, 
whosoever shall teach men to obey the law in its right 
interpretation, looking to the glory and honor of God, 
should be honored in heaven. It was a warning to the 
Scribes and Pharisees that righteousness must be 
inward, vital and spiritual, instead of outward and 
formal. 

255. What Are We to Understand by "Lead 
Us Not into Temptation"? 

God does not tempt any one. He may permit us to 
be placed in positions where, if left to our own re- 
sources, we would fall; but he does not tempt us to 
evil. Eve said, "The serpent beguiled me." (See Gen. 
3:1, 4, 5, 13.) She yielded in her weakness and suf- 
fered accordingly (vs. 14, 15, 16). In Matt. 4:1, and 
parallel passages, it is distinctly stated that the devil 
was the tempter of Jesus. In I Cor. 10:13, a l so > & is 
made clear that though God may permit us to- be 
tempted, he is not the tempter. See James 1:13, where 
it is emphatically asserted that God tempts no man. 
The withdrawal of the Holy Spirit exposes us to 
temptation, by leaving the heart open to the attack of 
the tempter ; but nothing is more erroneous than to as- 
sume that temptation, or the placing of any agent in 
man's spiritual path which may cause him to fall, 
comes from God. If this were true, he would be the 
author of eternal ruin to multitudes who rush into sin 
by yielding to temptation. See also Job, 1st and 2d 
chapters, where Satan is shown as the tempter who 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 255 

pleads to be allowed to test the spiritual stability of 
the patriarch. The only sources of temptation in any 
case are the evil spirit, the world and the flesh. Un- 
less we are fortified by the presence of the Divine 
Spirit, when these assail, we are especially exposed and 
liable to fall. See further on the subject Rev. 12:9; 
John 8 144; II Cor. 11 13 ; I John 3 :8 ; Mark 1 113 ; Luke 
4:2; Acts 5:3; Matt. 26:41. Even when God has 
made a trial of man's faith, he has done so in every 
instance by the removal of spiritual safeguards and 
leaving man to his own resources, when the tempter 
availed himself of the opportunity. In this sense, it 
is evident that a test is not a temptation. 

Some cannot reconcile the statement that God did 
tempt Abraham, Gen. 22 :i, with the assertion of James 
1 113 that God tempts no man. James refers to allure- 
ments to sin. Abraham was not tempted in that sense. 
He was tried and tested. Temptation is a trial and a 
test because when a man is tempted he learns his 
strength and weakness, hence the confusion in the 
meanings of the word. It is obvious, however, that 
the trial may come in different ways. In Abraham's 
case he was ordered to do something that was against 
his nature, and the question was whether he would do 
what he did not wish to do at the command of God. 
James, on the other hand, is speaking of a case in 
which a man is prompted to follow his own inclinations 
and to commit sin. God tempts no man to commit sin, 
but he does test our faith in him and love for him by 
trials. Job must have been tempted to take his wife's 
advice and curse God ; but his trials, as we know, were 
tests of his disinterested allegiance, not such tempta- 
tions as James refers to. 



256-257 Difficult Bible Questions 

256. Who Are the "Angels of the Little Ones"? 

The reference in Matt. 8:10 has caused discussion 
among divines in all periods of the Christian Church, 
and is by no means satisfactorily explained. Jesus 
seems to have lifted for a moment the veil over the 
unseen state, and to have spoken of a matter familiar 
to him, but incomprehensible to us. The apparent 
meaning is that even the humblest followers of Christ 
are ministered to by angels, who have access to the 
presence of God himself. 

257. What Is Meant by "The Children of the 

Kingdom Shall Be Cast Out into Outer 
Darkness" ? 

In this passage (Matt 8:11-12) Christ was evident- 
ly referring to the Jews. His remark was called forth 
by a Roman officer exhibiting more faith in him than 
had ever been done by a Jew. He therefore warned 
his Jewish hearers that, although they prided them- 
selves on being children of the kingdom of God, 
through their descent from Abraham, they might be 
excluded from the kingdom because of personal un- 
fitness ; while others, who could not claim that illus- 
trious pedigree, would be admitted because of their 
personal fitness. The present application of his words 
appears to us to be not to converted persons, but to 
nominal Christians, who have never been converted, 
but expect to enter heaven because they belong to 
Christian families, have been baptized and admitted to 
membership in a Christian church, but have not the 
spirit of Christ and Christ's words here also apply to 
people in Christian countries who having a knowledge 
of the things of God, do not live according to their 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 258-259 

knowledge. They, too, will see people who had not 
their advantages admitted, while they themselves are 
excluded. 

258. What Is Meant by "Let the Dead Bury 

Their Dead"? 

The language employed by Christ (Matt. 8:22) on 
the occasion in question is to be accepted figuratively, 
as in many other instances of his teachings. He was 
speaking of the characteristics of true discipleship, and 
particularly referred to those w T ho permitted themselves 
to become so entangled in worldly affairs, that they 
persistently procrastinated in spiritual things. To these, 
Jesus showed that all other claims were inferior to the 
divine claim upon their energies and the paramount 
command to "preach the kingdom of God." These 
should take precedence even of the highest claims of 
nature. While immortal souls are in peril, the true 
disciple must not hesitate, but must go even at the 
sacrifice of all he holds dear. Those who remain, be- 
ing dead to the spiritual call, may well be relied upon 
to fulfill all needful natural duties to the dead or the 
dying among themselves. The disciple's duty is to 
obey the call, leaving the consequences with God. 

259. Why Did Jesus Want the News of His 

Miracles Kept Quiet? 

It was probably out of consideration for his fol- 
lowers, as there might be a popular rising which might 
lead to slaughter. The people were expecting the 
Messiah to be a king and, if they had recognized 
Christ, and still held that notion they would probably 



260-261 Difficult Bible Questions 

have risen in rebellion against Rome. On one occasion 
(John 6:15), he hid himself to prevent such a rising. 
It was safe after his death to preach him as the Christ, 
because then the spiritual nature of his kingdom would 
be understood ; but while he lived, it was necessary to 
avoid publicity. Even the disciples expected that he 
would make himself king and did not understand his 
real purpose until after the resurrection. 

260. What Is Meant by "Who Is Able to De- 

stroy Both Soul and Body in Hell"? 

Stier and some other writers contend that it is 
Satan to whom Christ refers in Matt. 10:28, but the 
context disproves this theory. The whole tenor of the 
chapter is directed to encouraging men to trust in God 
and -to fear offending him. Christ shows in the fol- 
lowing verse how God's control covers all life, and 
that without his permission no life is lost. Christ does 
not teach us anywhere to fear Satan, but to rejoice 
that, through himself, Satan has been overcome. In 
this passage the contrast is between the fear of man 
on the one hand, which might lead us to keep away 
from Christ or desert him lest we should be persecuted ; 
and the fear, on the other hand, of God whose power 
is infinite in extent, and whom we should dread to 
displease. 

261. What Is Meant by "I Came Not to Send 

Peace, but a Sword"? 

Christ's work on the individual soul may help you 
to understand his meaning (Matt. 10:34). The con- 
verted soul enjoys a peace passing all understanding; 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 262 

but how is it attained? The first stages of the process 
are those of fierce conflict. See the agony, the dis- 
tress, that the majority of men pass through when they 
are under conviction. It is through conflict that peace 
is attained. It is so with the evil in the world. Christ's 
kingdom is one of peace ; but not the despicable peace 
with wickedness and oppression. With those evils 
there must be war. If a father wisely loves his son, 
he does not ignore that son's bad ways ; he punishes 
him in order to save him. You may say how do we 
reconcile the rod in the father's hand with his love for 
his child.. There is no need to reconcile. The rod is 
a sign and proof of the father's love. So Christ's com- 
ing brought a sword to smite the evil that is cursing 
the world. 

262. What Is Meant by "For I Am Come to Set 
a Man at Variance with His Father"? 

This statement (Matt. 10:35) showed the result of 
his coming, not the purpose of it. Christ was warning 
the people who came to him of the sufferings they 
would have to endure, among which was this of the 
hostility of their near relatives. Many were offering 
themselves as his disciples who expected that he would 
become the King of Israel, and that they would share his 
glory, and he wished none to come with any such idea. 
He wanted them to count the cost, and he told them 
of the trials awaiting them if they followed him. They 
must be quite sure that they loved him so well that if 
their fathers or their brothers cast them off for being 
Christians they would be faithful to Christ, even at 
the cost of losing the love of their relatives. 



263-265 Difficult Bible Questions 

263. What Is Meant by "This Is Elias Which 

Was to Come"? Matt. 11:14. 

There was a prophecy that God would send Elijah 
or Elias to turn the hearts of the people (Malachi 
4:5). When John appeared the Jews asked him if 
he was Elias, and he answered that he was not (John 
1 :2i). They evidently expected that the literal Elijah, 
who is represented as ascending to heaven without dy- 
ing (II Kings 2:11), would be sent to earth. John 
knew he was not that. He regarded himself as a hum- 
ble messenger, a mere voice, with no distinction but 
that of preparing the way. The character of his 
preaching, however, shows that, like other messengers 
from God, he underestimated his dignity. When Christ 
spoke of him he settled the question definitely in the 
passage you refer to. John, he said, was the Elias 
to whom the prophecy referred. 

264. What Are the "Idle Words" that Men 

Shall Give Account of? 

The passage in Matt. 12 136 means unseemly or im- 
proper conversation, levity, slander, scoffing, boasting, 
swearing, mocking at sacred things. The Saviour had 
been speaking of blasphemy and of the scoffing atti- 
tude of the Pharisees, who imputed his miracles to 
Beelzebub. The "idle words" presumably referred 
more particularly to their sceptical way of accounting 
for the miracles, of which they had spoken slightingly. 

265. What Are We to Understand by Christ's 

Parable of the Return of the Unclean 
Spirit? 

Its first application, as the closing words show, is 
to the Jews of that time. (See Matt. 12:43, 45.) They 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 266 

were rid of the evil of idolatry., but were worse than 
their fathers, who worshiped idols, in that they rejected 
Jesus and finally crucified him. In modern times, the 
same evil is seen when a nation abandons its super- 
stitions, but instead of turning to Christ, and becoming 
Christian, becomes atheistic. Its application to individ- 
uals is of the same character. Christianity is positive 
as well as negative in its effects. It forbids and con- 
demns sin (that is negative) ; it also enjoins love, 
kindness, service (that is positive). If, for example, 
a man who has been a drunkard overcomes his pro- 
pensity, that is, gets rid of his unclean spirit, but does 
not go forward to faith in Christ, he is liable to become 
Pharisaic and intolerant, and perhaps sceptical. In 
that condition he is liable to fall into worse sin. The 
throne of the soul is never empty. If Christ does not 
rule, some evil spirit takes possession. 

266. What Are the Tares Mentioned in Matt. 
13:25? 

The tares in the parable refer to the seed called 
"darnel," a rank and widely distributed grass, and the 
only species that has deleterious properties. It is 
poisonous and its grains, if eaten, produce vomiting, 
purging, convulsions and sometimes even death. Be- 
fore it comes into the ear it resembles the wheat so 
closely that it can hardly be distinguished from the 
latter, hence the command to leave it to the harvest. 
Grain-growers in Palestine believe the tares, or zuwan, 
to be a diseased or degenerate wheat. The seed resem- 
bles wheat in form, but is smaller and nearly black. 



267-268 Difficult Bible Questions 

267. What Was the Power Conferred on Peter 

by Christ's Commission of the Keys? 

The keys and the power of binding and loosing 
referred to a common Jewish custom. When a man 
had passed his examinations for the high position of 
a doctor of the law, he received as his diploma, a key 
which was handed to him with the words, "Receive 
authority to bind and to loose/' that is to permit or 
forbid. Having mastered the law, he could say whether 
some act was lawful or unlawful. Peter's declaration 
that Jesus was the Son of God was the evidence of 
his having reached a state of spiritual faith and per- 
ception which Christ recognized (Matt. 16:18, 19). 
The keys may also have had reference to Peter's open- 
ing the doors of Christ's kingdom to the multitude on 
the day of Pentecost and to the Gentiles by preaching 
to Cornelius. It is clear that the Apostles did not rec- 
ognize Peter as superior to themselves. It was James 
who passed sentence in the council (Acts 15:13, 19) 
although Peter was present; and Paul "withstood 
Peter to the face." (Gal. 2:11.) 

268. What Is Meant in Jesus' Advice "Turn 

to Him the Other Also"? 

Christ's teaching in this and other passages was 
intended to inculcate principles, rather than blind, lit- 
eral, servile obedience. He would have his followers 
patient, gentle, non-resistant, forbearing, submitting 
to be wronged rather than resisting. His own example 
in yielding himself to death, when by the exercise of 
his miraculous powers he could have delivered himself, 
is an illustration of his meaning. Yet he scourged the 
traders in the Temple, and in denouncing the Scribes 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 269-270 

and Pharisees he showed that he was not deficient in 
vigor. There have, however, been many instances of 
men literally obeying the command to turn the other 
cheek, and in some, the effect on the striker was to 
produce shame and humiliation greater than could 
have resulted from a fight. There have been many, 
too, who after painful experience have wished they 
had submitted to a wrong instead of going to the 
courts. (See Matt. 18:15, 16, 17.) 

269. Who Are the People to Whom Christ 

Referred as Being "Joined Together of 
God"? 

We may understand the remark better by reading 
the whole passage (Matt. 19:1-12). The Pharisees 
were trying to draw Christ into a controversy which, 
at the time, was raging between the schools of different 
Jewish teachers. One school contended that a man 
was justified in divorcing his wife for any cause as, 
for instance, if she burnt the food she was cooking 
for his dinner. Another school held that physical 
defects alone justified divorce. There were other 
schools holding other opinions. Christ refused to iden- 
tify himself with any and lifted the question into the 
higher plane by showing the origin of marriage in 
divine institution. 

270. What Was the "Needle's Eye"? 

The "needle's eye" (Matt. 19:24) was the small 
gate or wicket at the side of the big gate at the en- 
trance to the city wall. When the big gate closed for 
the day, all entrance had to be gained through the 



271 Difficult Bible Questions 

small gate, and to a loaded camel, or indeed to any 
body of considerable size, passage was impossible. 

271. What Is Meant by "A Rich Man Shall 
Hardly Enter the Kingdom of God"? 

To rightly understand the full significance of the 
passage in Matt. 19:23 read Luke 18:24-27. It may 
be liberally interpreted: "How hard it is for those 
who trust in riches to enter! Unless this idolatrous 
trust and confidence in mere wealth is overcome, they 
cannot enter" except by a miracle of divine grace, 
which changes the heart. Jesus found no fault with 
the young man because of his riches, since wealth, and 
the power and influence it brings, may be made a 
means of great blessing if used in the right spirit as 
a trust committed to our stewardship. He found, 
however, that the young man's wealth was to him of 
greater moment than his eternal welfare, since he 
could not grasp the great opportunity offered him by 
the Master. Paul in I Cor. 6:10 also has a bearing 
upon the love of wealth and the hard and merciless 
means that are sometimes adopted to acquire it. 
Where extortion begins may be defined by statute, 
but it must really be determined by the conscience, 
since what is a fair return in one case may be a cruel 
extortion in another. We must carry the Christ idea 
into our business relations, and deal not only justly 
but generously and humanely, never making gain of 
another's necessity, and if with all we pile up riches, 
we are apt to rely on them to put us into heaven. This 
was the case of the young man who came to Christ. 
The sincerity of the young man was obvious ; yet he 
himself felt that although he had lived a clean, moral 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 272 

life, keeping the letter of the law in absolute strictness, 
there was yet something wanting. He was not satisfied 
with his own blameless life. It was to find out what 
this hidden need was that he came to the Master, and 
asked, "What lack I yet?" Jesus, reading his heart, 
knew that his wealth stood as a barrier between him 
and the spiritual life he craved ; that the influence and 
social position it gave were so dear to him that he 
could not bear to part with them, even to attain his 
ideal of a perfect life. His riches were his idol, and 
this the Master knew. So when Jesus in his wisdom 
put the test, forcing the young man to choose between 
riches and heaven — that he must himself cast aside 
the stumbling-block in his spiritual path — he failed at 
the crisis, turned his back upon the Master, and went 
away sorrowful. Jesus demanded an absolute sur- 
render of the heart and the whole life, the placing of 
all in the scale as a heart offering. Good works could 
not save, but sacrifice of our works and our wealth 
brings us into a new and divine relationship as true 
heirs to the kingdom. See Matt. 19:29, in which the 
spiritual compensation for such sacrifice is promised. 
The rich young ruler came very near to the kingdom, 
but without entering in. His own estimate of his obe- 
dience was not justified, for if he had indeed kept the 
firsi" commandment he would have placed God first, 
above even his much-prized earthly treasures, and he 
would never have gone away from Christ, 

272. What Is the Parable of the Laborers In- 
tended to Teach? Matt. 20:1-6. 

There has, probably, been more difference in ex- 
plaining this parable than any other. To us it appears 
that the incidents of it are not intended as laying 



273 Difficult Bible Questions 

down a business principle, but as a commentary on 
the events in the preceding chapter. Peter had asked, 
"What shall we have, therefore?" showing a bar- 
gaining spirit. Christ shows him by this parable that, 
not they who stipulate for reward, but they who trust 
in God, leaving their reward for him to fix are treated 
best. That was a prominent characteristic of Christ. 
He craved personal trust and personal faith in him- 
self. Where does the injustice of the householder 
come in ? He kept his agreement with the early labor- 
ers, who had stipulated for a penny a day. They had 
the amount they had demanded and had no grievance. 
The householder chose to deal more liberally w T ith the 
others, who had left their remuneration to him, but 
that w T as in no sense a wrong to the early laborers. If 
an employer knows something about one of his em- 
ployees — perhaps that he has been sick, or that he has 
a large family — and chooses to give him a double 
wage, is he bound to go all round his factory and 
double the wages of every man in his employ? It is 
the hireling spirit, the spirit of the man who bargains, 
who resents the kindness done to another as a wrong 
to himself, that Christ reproves here. He condemns 
it, as he condemned the elder brother in the parable 
of the Prodigal Son, who resented the feast to the 
prodigal and reminded the father of his own claims. 
Many of the first (not all) shall be last because of the 
spirit in which they have performed their work. 

273. In the Parable of the Laborers What Is 
the Principle Taught? 

This parable in Matt. 20:1-16 stands in close con- 
nection with the preceding chapter, and its evident 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 273 

purpose was to illustrate the sentiment of the closing 
verse : "Many that are first shall be last, and the last 
shall be first." The parable has reference to rewards, 
and illustrates the method of their bestowment upon 
the followers of Christ, namely, in such a way that 
the last shall be equal to the first, and the first last — a 
way that rewards faithfulness of service, rather than 
length of service or the amount accomplished in the 
service. The purpose of the parable, being under- 
stood, it cannot properly awaken any question as to 
discrimination in the matter of the pay of the laborers. 
As to the transaction of the householder, as represented 
in the parable, there was no injustice in it. He agreed 
with the first laborers for "a penny a day," while with 
the others no specified amount was agreed upon, and 
he could pay them what he pleased. Further, the 
Saviour does not necessarily approve the course of the 
householder, and we are not required to show that it 
was either right or wise, as an act of man toward 
men, but only that rewards in the kingdom of God are 
thus bestowed without reference to the time of service, 
another and very different consideration actuating our 
Heavenly Father in this matter — namely, faithfulness. 
The parable was an answer to Peter's question 
(Matt. 19:27), "Behold, we have forsaken all and 
followed thee: what shall we have therefore ?" In a 
word, it was a rebuke of the bargaining spirit. Those 
who follow Christ for the sake of the reward, and not 
from love of him, will not be defrauded. They will 
have all that God has promised them, but they are not 
those whom he most loves. A parent who promises 
a child a reward for a certain service, or for good be- 
havior, and notices that the child performs the task 

12 



274 Difficult Bible Questions 

or behaves himself better than at other times, when no 
reward is promised, does not approve of the child's 
spirit. He does not like to* see the child doing for 
money the thing that he does not do for love, as he 
ought to do. Still, he keeps his promise and pays, as 
he agreed. But the child who does cheerfully and 
readily, as the parent requests, without any promise 
of reward, is the one whom the parent approves. That 
child would surely be rewarded, though no reward 
had been promised. 

The householder in the parable makes his bargain 
with the first party of laborers. The phrase, "when 
he had agreed with them," clearly implies negotiation. 
With the others he made no bargain, merely giving 
his promise to pay whatsoever was right. They trusted 
him, and went to work. He liked the confidence they 
showed, and he gave them more than they expected. 
The early morning laborers had no just ground of 
complaint. They received all they had stipulated for. 
All through Christ's ministry he showed the same 
spirit. He craved personal love and confidence. He 
wanted people, above all things, to trust in him. Peter's 
question must have chilled Christ's spirit. It might 
have been interpreted as showing that this man who 
Christ supposed was following him for love, was 
there for what he could make out of it. Hence, the 
rebuke of the parable. 

274. How Are We to Interpret "The Son of 
Man Came Not to be Ministered Unto 
but to Minister"? 

This passage in Matt. 20 :28, is the elevation of the 
duty of Christian service. Of course Christ did come 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 275 

to earth to win all men to his service, but it was for 
their sakes rather than his own. To serve him meant 
salvation; it was sin that kept them from their 
allegiance to him. And he came to save them from 
their sins. All the time he was in the flesh he gave 
rather than accepted service. He was moved by love. 
Even when the people would have taken him by force 
to make him king he would not accept it. That was 
not the kind of service he wanted. He wanted men 
to serve himj in holiness and spiritual power. He gave 
his body in humiliation and sacrifice in order that they 
might be lifted up to this higher plane of service. The 
whole message of the New Testament is that Christ 
came to earth for the sake of mankind, not for his own 
sake. And he taught by example the life of humility, 
self-sacrifice and service which he wishes all men to 
lead. 

275. What Did Jesus Mean by Faith That 
Could Remove Mountains? 

This is the language of similitude and figure which 
Jesus frequently employed to illustrate and emphasize 
his teaching. A leading commentator writes of this 
passage (Matt. 21:21): "From the nature of the 
case supposed — that they might wish a mountain re- 
moved and cast into the sea (a thing very far from 
anything which they could be thought to actually de- 
sire) — it is plain that not physical but moral obstacles 
to the progress of his kingdom were in the Saviour's 
mind." What he designed to teach was the great les- 
son that no obstacle should be able to stand before a 
firm faith in God — that it would enable us to over- 
come all difficulties, if we absolutely trusted in him. 



276-277 Difficult Bible Questions 

278- Was the Man without the Wedding Gar- 
ment Harshly Dealt with? 

No; he was treated as he deserved. At a wedding 
feast in an Oriental land such as Christ was describing, 
the king would provide garments for his guests, suita- 
ble to the occasion. A guest who declined to wear 
the wedding garment and went in wearing his ordin- 
ary attire, would be conspicuous and his conduct would 
be an affront to the king. He would naturally be con- 
sidered as despising the dress which the king had pro- 
vided and preferring his own. Christ, in the passage 
in Matt. 22:11-13, was warning his hearers against 
trusting in their own righteousness and rejecting God's 
way of salvation. 

277. Why Should We Call Jesus "Master"? 

Because he himself has told us to do so. It is a 
very beautiful and inspiring title which Christians 
everywhere may apply to their beloved Lord. (See 
Matt. 23 :io.) This passage is a part of Jesus' denun- 
ciation of the Scribes and Pharisees, who were given 
over to formalism and regarded the letter rather than 
the spirit of Scripture. They sought personal honors 
and the applause of the multitudes. They carried 
strips of parchment of Scripture texts, bound to arm, 
forehead and side, in time of prayer, and they loved 
to be addressed by ecclesiastical titles. Rabbi (Master) 
was a title which they particularly affected and which 
their whole spiritual conduct discredited. Had they 
been true teachers and guides, instead of false, he 
would not have reprobated them, nor would they have 
belied the title they bore. Titles in the modern Chris- 
tian Church are vain distinctions, except where they 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 278-279 

are worthily worn. All should be brethren in Christ, 
the highest dignitary of the church and the humblest 
follower. Unfortunately, in every age there has been 
a desire for ecclesiastical distinctions and, while in 
many cases these have been merited and gladly ac- 
corded, in others the honors were not deserved. The 
ecclesiastical system of the Jews lent* itself to this 
vanity to such an extent as to arouse the divine indig- 
nation. The title "Rab" was originally Babylonian 
and that of "Rabbi," Palestinian. It was given to 
learned men, authorized teachers of the law and spirit- 
ual heads of the community. 

278. What Is Meant by "Heaven and Earth 

Shall Pass Away"? 

The expressions "heaven" and "the heavens" mean 
not only the spiritual, eternal world, but also the 
stars and the spaces of ether surrounding the earth. 
Jesus used the word frequently in both these senses. 
He spoke of "the kingdom of heaven," signifying the 
eternal kingdom, and then spoke of the stars as "hea- 
ven" or "the heavens" in passages like the one you 
mention. Paul speaks of "the house not made with 
hands eternal in the heavens." (II Cor. 5:1.) The 
teaching of the Bible is that the material universe, in- 
cluding the earth itself, will be transformed, but that 
the spiritual universe will endure forever. 

279. What Is the Lesson of the Parable of the 

Talents ? 

The parable in Matt. 25 was given to explain the 
principle of the judgment. From one who had been 
well endowed much would be expected, and a smaller 



280-281 Difficult Bible Questions 

result would be looked for from one who had received 
less. Only he would be punished who had made no 
effort to turn his talents to account. Christ probably 
intended it to apply to every kind of gift. Men of 
wealth, of education, of spiritual privilege, with any 
kind of opportunity for doing good, were affected by 
it. A man must do the best he could in his circum- 
stances, and if he could not do as well, or as much as, 
another who was better equipped, he would not be 
blamed. The distinction between worldly and spiritual 
is somewhat vague in this instance. The man who 
gives to a starving family is not exactly doing spiritual 
work, but it is the kind of work that this parable would 
apply to. 

280. Was the Story of the Rich Man and Laz- 

arus a Parable or an Actual Fact? 

It was a parable — an illustration of the kind made 
familiar in the teachings of Christ. It is the only 
parable in which a proper name is employed, and 
Lazarus was probably chosen because it was a common 
name. By some both men in the parable have been 
considered as real personages, and one tradition even 
gives the name of the rich man as Dobruk, while an- 
other gives it as Nimeusis. Neither tradition is deserv- 
ing of credit, and the best commentators agree that 
the two characters were described by the Saviour 
simply to illustrate two type of men. 

281. Did Jesus in Any of His Parables Make 

Allusion to Historical Characters? 

He is thought by some to have done so in the para- 
ble of the talents (Matt. 25). Dean Farrar points 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 282 

this out as follows : "It is the only instance in which 
we can connect a parable of the Gospel with historical 
events. The man who goes into another country to 
seek a kingdom is Archelaus, son of Herod the Great. 
Left heir of the chief part of Herod's kingdom by the 
last will of his father, altered within five days of his 
death, Archelaus had to travel to Rome to obtain from 
the Emperor Augustus the confirmation of his heritage. 
During his absence he had to leave the kingdom under 
commission to his kinsmen and servants, some of whom 
were wise and faithful, and others much the reverse. 
The circumstances of the succession of Archelaus 
would be recalled to Christ's memory as he passed 
the magnificent palace which the tyrant had built at 
Jericho. Archelaus was absent at Rome for some 
months. Jesus calls him a 'hard man.' The grasping 
character of Archelaus made him unpopular from the 
first, and the hatred felt for him was increased by his 
deadly cruelties. The event to which our Lord here dis- 
tinctly refers had occurred in his own infancy." 

282. What Is Meant by "New Wine in Old 
Bottles"? 

Mark 2:21, 22 is designed to illustrate the difference 
between the old and new economies, and the result of 
mixing up one with the other. The "new wine" was 
the evangelical freedom which Christ was introducing 
into the old spirit of Judaism. It was as though he 
had said, "These inquiries about the difficulty between 
my disciples and the Pharisees, and even John's disci- 
ples, serve to point out the effect of a natural revulsion 
against sudden change, which time will cure and which 
will be seen to be to the better advantage." 



283-284 Difficult Bible Questions 

283. What Is Meant by "Unto Them That Are 

without, All These Things Are Done in 
Parables"? 

In the passage in Mark 4:11, 12 Jesus meant appar- 
ently that he made the difference between his teaching 
of disciples and of the ordinary people because of the 
spiritual insight of the former. It was of no use to 
give the latter the direct teaching that he gave the 
disciples. But he taught them by illustrations to which 
they would listen and which w T ould remain in their 
minds. They would thus learn more than they knew 
at the time. The meaning of the stories was not clear 
to them then, and they probably thought there was no 
particular moral to them, but the influence of the teach- 
ing would be felt afterwards. Sometimes a child may 
play at a game that may teach him geography or history 
and his teacher is aware that the child has learned more 
than he has any idea of. The child may be interested 
in a fable and see nothing in it applicable to himself, 
but in future years the moral meaning of the fable may 
be perceptible to him. 

284. What Did Our Lord Mean When He Spoke 

of "The Mystery of the Kingdom"? 

The word "mystery," found in Mark 4:11, 12 as in 
certain other places in Scripture, is not used in the 
classical sense of religious secrets or things incompre- 
hensible, but of things of purely divine revelation — 
matters foreshadowed in the ancient economy and then 
only partially understood, but now fully published un- 
der the Gospel (see I Cor. 2:6, 10; Eph. 3:3, 6, 8, 9). 
The mysteries of the kingdom meant those great Gos- 
pel truths which at that time none but the disciples 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 285-286 

could appreciate, and even they only in part, while to 
those without (whose hearts had not yet been opened 
to the Gospel) they were like tales and fables, subjects 
of entertainment rather than divine truths. Such per- 
sons saw but recognized not, and heard but understood 
not, for their spiritual sight and understanding were 
judicially sealed by sin. From obdurate rejection of 
the Gospel, and their obstinacy in preferring darkness 
to light, they had become morally incapable of accep- 
tance and totally indifferent. (See prophecy of Is. 
6:9, 10, then read contrasting passage in Matt. 13:16.) 

285. How Should We Interpret Jesus' Words 

"The Damsel Is Not Dead, but Sleepeth"? 

The Saviour's language in Mark 5 139 was as though 
he had used the familiar figure "she hath fallen asleep" 
— the same figure that is frequently employed in the 
Scriptures in describing death as sleep. (See Acts 7 :6o; 
I Cor. 15 :6, 18; II Peter 3 14.) Some have interpreted 
the language of Mark 5 to mean that the maid was in 
a trance or swoon ; but most commentators agree that 
Mark 5 135 is a clear affirmation that all the signs of 
death were evident, that the life had already fled and 
that the reassuring words of the Master (in verse 36) 
before he had even seen the maid, were intended to 
strengthen the ruler's faith and prepare him for the 
manifestation of divine power that followed. The last 
nine verses, read as a whole, bear out this conclusion. 

286. What Kind of Baskets Were Used in the 

Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes? 

The Gospel accounts say: "They took up what re- 
mained over of the broken pieces twelve baskets full" 
(Matt. 14:20). "They took up of the broken meat 



287 Difficult Bible Questions 

that was left seven baskets" (Mark 8:8). There have 
been some differences among scholars as to the trans- 
lation of the word (in the original) denoting "baskets." 
In describing the earlier miracle, that of the feeding 
of five thousand, a word is used which indicates large 
fishing baskets made of rope, while in the narrative 
of the later miracle, there is used a term which trans- 
lated means smaller hand-baskets. It might w r ell be 
asked how could the apostles have carried around with 
them seven large fishing baskets? A comparison be- 
tween the two accounts will clear up a seeming diffi- 
culty. Many Jews carried small hand-baskets in 
which they kept their food supplies free from pollution. 
Each apostle may have carried such a small hand- 
basket and in the party of apostles there may have 
been one who carried a large fishing basket. This 
large fishing basket was filled seven times and again 
twelve times, for the phraseology used seems to indi- 
cate that, whereas in the one instance each apostle 
filled his small hand-basket with broken pieces, in the 
other the one large fishing basket was filled seven times. 

287. Who Was the Little Child That Jesus Took 
Up and Blessed? 

The details of these incidents in the life of Jesus, 
have been preserved to us only by tradition. It is 
said that the little child of whom the Saviour re- 
marked, "of such is the kingdom of heaven" (Mark 
9:36), afterwards became known to the Christian 
Church as Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch. He was one 
of the great company of martyrs who gave their lives 
for the faith in the time of Trajan, being torn to pieces 
by lions in the amphitheatre at Rome. 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 288-289 

288. What Did Jesus Mean by Saying "Why 

Callest Thou Me Good"? 

The true meaning of the much discussed passage 
(Mark 10:17) quoted is thus explained by very good 
authority. Professor David Smith, who writes : " 'Mas- 
ter' or 'Teacher' was the regular appellation of a Jew- 
ish Rabbi, and it was accounted so honorable that it 
always stood alone without qualification. It was a 
deliberate departure from the established usage, an 
intentional improvement on the common style, when 
the young ruler addressed our Lord as 'Good Master/ 
It showed that he had recognized him as more than a 
teacher ; and when our Lord fastened upon the epithet, 
his purpose was to elicit what his questioner really 
meant. He said in effect : 'You have gone a long way 
in calling me "good." That epithet belongs only to 
God. You have recognized me as more than a teacher : 
are you prepared to go farther, and recognize me as 
divine?' Hence it appears that our Lord's question 
is not a repudiation of the attribute of deity. On the 
contrary, it is an assertion of his title to it. It is a 
gracious attempt to bring home to that anxious in- 
quirer, in conscious realization, the truth which he had 
dimly perceived and was groping for." 

289. Why Was the Fig Tree Blighted? 

The fig tree incident related in Mark 11 113 has been 
a subject of much controversy, and the passage in 
Mark 11 113 has been claimed by some to be a mistake 
in the transcription of the record as to the words, 
"He found nothing but leaves, for the time of figs was 
not yet." It is explained by some writers (including 
Pliny and Macrobius) that the fig tree in Palestine 



290 Difficult Bible Questions 

produces fruit at two or even three seasons of the 
year, and Hackett (in his Scripture Illustrations) tells 
us that the fruit precedes the leaves. One might infer 
from this that if a tree had leaves it might be expected 
to give evidence at least of having had fruit. In the case 
of this particular tree, having leaves in advance -of the 
regular time (which "was not yet come") yet with no 
sign of having borne fruit, it was condemned, as some 
commentators interpret the case, because of its useless- 
ness. Trench and several others hold that the blight- 
ing of the precocious and fruitless tree was designed 
to convey a rebuke to "the barren traditions of the 
Pharisees, their ostentatious display of the law, and 
their vain exuberance of words without the good fruit 
of works." Still others, believe that our Lord, seeing 
the early leaves, had a right to expect that they would 
be accompanied by fruit. 

290. Was Christ Omniscient in the Flesh? 

It is reasonable to suppose that in the days of his 
flesh Christ experienced some curtailment of divine 
attributes. We read of his being weary, of his weep- 
ing, of his praying, being hungry and thirsty, and being 
tempted. We read also of his increasing in wisdom 
(Luke 2 '.52). We infer from all these that the divine 
nature did not have full scope for its powers in the hu- 
man form or could only express them partially owing 
to the obvious limitations. Christ seems to have been 
aware of this while on the earth, for he said, "My 
Father is greater than I." (John 14:28.) We conclude, 
therefore, that a part of his humiliation was his vol- 
untarily divesting himself of some part of his divine 
nature and this may account for such a passage as 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 291 

Mark 13:32. It is impossible for the human mind to 
fully comprehend the mystery of the Trinity, but we 
can imagine that Christ in his loving compassion, vol- 
untarily put from him certain attributes of the God- 
head while on earth in order that in all things he might 
be made like unto his brethren. In what way or to 
what extent, if at all, the incarnation limited the di- 
vine attributes cannot be defined, and the fact of his 
praying to his Father indicated that in the days of his 
flesh there was a distinction between them that is 
incomprehensible to us. 

291. Does Christ's Admission that He Did Not 
Know the Time of the End Imply that 
He Was Not Divine? 

No, the inference (to be drawn from Mark 13:32) 
does not appear logical. We do not understand the 
union of the two natures in our Lord's person, and 
therefore cannot explain many of the difficulties which 
are presented. If, however, we take the conception 
that is given in the first chapter of John's Gospel, of 
an incarnation, we can perceive how there may have 
been restriction in the exercise of divine power operat- 
ing by a human brain. The instrument would be nec- 
essarily inadequate. The assumption of an unrestricted 
divine nature would imply perfect knowledge in boy- 
hood, yet we know that as a boy Christ did not know 
all things; for Luke says explicitly (2:52) that he 
increased in wisdom, which he could not have done had 
he been omniscient from birth. In taking our nature 
he voluntarily submitted to the imperfections of our 
condition, otherwise he would not have been made 
"like unto his brethren. " 



292-293 Difficult Bible Questions 

292. If Christ Knew All Things, Did He Not 

Know that Judas Was Not a True Be- 
liever? 

Christ did not claim to know all things. He men- 
tioned one thing that he did not know (Mark 13:32). 
At the same time he is said to have known what was 
in man (John 2:25), so he may have been aware of 
the possibilities of evil in Judas, which were probably 
not developed when he was chosen as an apostle. Christ 
knew of his intended treachery before it was com- 
mitted. Doubtless Judas himself, at the time of his 
call, had no idea that he would commit such a crime. 
Even at the last, he may have expected that Christ 
would deliver himself by his miraculous power. He 
was evidently horror-stricken when he learned the re- 
sult of what he had done, as is proved by his commit- 
ting suicide. 

293. What Are the Signs Which Jesus Said 

"Shall Follow Them That Believe"? 

Jesus did not promise that the signs referred to in 
Mark 16:17 should always follow. The speaking 
with tongues, casting out devils, taking up serpents, 
etc., were signs suitable for that age when the people, 
being densely ignorant, expected miracles and signs. 
Christ reproved the tendency, and on more than one 
occasion refused to gratify them. He wanted them 
to learn from the sign to seek spiritual blessings at 
his hands, which were of much greater value to them. 
We have entered into that higher and better under- 
standing of him. It is much more wonderful to see a 
drunkard reclaimed, a vicious man reformed, than it 
was to see a lame man healed. The power to cast out 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 294-295 

devils and to speak with tongues and take up serpents 
would not be nearly so valuable to us as is the power 
he gives to transform evil lives. 

294. Why Did Jesus Say of John "He That Is 

Least in the Kingdom of God Is Greater 
than He"? 

The passage in Luke 7 :28 is frequently misunder- 
stood, as being spoken in derogation of John, because 
of the doubt his messengers had implied in their ques- 
tion (verse 20). The true meaning, as Weiss and 
other commentators believe, is that Jesus was speaking 
of the differences in the success of the Baptist with 
certain classes. The common people and the publicans, 
who had repented under John's ministry, and had been 
baptized by him, understood the meaning of Jesus and 
were glad (verse 29), but the Pharisees and Scribes — 
the very class who should have been models of right- 
eousness, had rejected and despised John. That Jesus 
spoke with this contrast in view is made clear in verses 
30 to 35 inclusive. He was speaking of the advance- 
ment of the kingdom in the hearts of men. 

295. What Was the Special Value and Object 

of Jesus' Parables? 

"But unto others in parables that seeing they might 
not see and hearing they might not understand'' Luke 
8:10. Dean Farrar says on this passage: "Lord 
Bacon says, 'A parable has a double use ; it tends 
to veil and it tends to illustrate a truth ; in the latter 
case it seems designed to teach, in the former to con- 
ceal/ Our Lord wished the multitude to understand, 
but the result and profit depended solely on the degree 



296 Difficult Bible Questions 

of their faithfulness. The parables resembled the Pil- 
lar of Fire, which was to the Egyptians a Pillar of 
Cloud." 

The truth veiled in the form of parable was with- 
held from the people because their minds had grown 
too gross to receive it. "Had the parable of the mus- 
tard seed, for instance," says Dr. Whedon, "been ex- 
plained to the Pharisees as indicating that the Gospel 
would yet fill the earth, it would only have excited 
their additional hostility and hastened their purpose 
of accusing him as intending to subvert the existing 
government." They themselves, as we learn from 
Matt. 13:15, had wilfully closed their eyes to the Gos- 
pel, and so its real principles must be withheld from 
them. To some this may have been a mercy, prevent- 
ing them from using the truth to evil purposes. To 
others it may have been simply the penalty due them 
for having insulted the truth and become unworthy of 
it. While, however, the parable veiled the truth from 
cavillers, it unveiled it to the disciples (Matt. 13:11). 
The unreceptive people, "seeing" the narrative, saw 
"not" the doctrine embodied; "hearing" the literal 
parable, they understood "not" the secret meaning. 
"The whole Gospel is a parable to him whose heart 
has not the key." This solemn teaching is found also 
in the law and the prophets. Deu. 29:3, 4; Is. 6:9; 
Jer. 5 :2i ; Ezek. 12:2. 

296. How Are We to Understand "Whosoever 
Hath, to Him Shall Be Given"? 

This expression (Luke 8:18) occurs in a number 
of New Testament passages, Matt. 13:12, Mark 4:25, 
etc. Its meaning is most evident in Matt. 25 129, and 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 297 

Luke 19:26, in connection with the parable of the 
talents, or pounds. Christ is stating in these words 
two laws which are universal. First, a man must have 
something to start with before he can do any work. 
Second, if he does not make good use of what is given 
he loses it. In other words : something never comes 
from nothing ; neglect means loss. Every man is given 
something to start with for working out his life plan. 
If he neglects to use what he has he loses it. It cannot 
be said that God takes it away from him ; the man 
simply lets it slip through his fingers. Helen Keller 
had very little to begin with, but she made such amaz- 
ingly faithful use of that, that she gained much more. 
She used and developed the sense of touch till it has 
become almost equal to sight and hearing. But a 
sense or a muscle unused becomes useless. A man has 
only to stop walking and he will soon lose the power 
to walk. It is ridiculous to say that there is anything 
cruel about this. It is simply the law of life. And 
the law works no hardship to any one who has a desire 
to make good use of life. In the passage (Luke 8 :i8) 
the law is applied to hearing. When a man hears a 
truth he must follow it and apply it quickly. If he 
does not he will forget it, or cease to believe it, or 
lose it in some other way. 

297. Why Did Jesus Allow Evil Spirits to Enter 
the Herd of Swine? 

According to the law of Moses, swine were unclean, 
and any Jew owning them or using them as food vio- 
lated this law. The destruction of the herd (Luke 
8:26, 36) and the question of the destination of the 
evil spirits has been well explained by Trench in his 

13 



298 Difficult Bible Questions 

famous book on Miracles. He wrote : "A man is of 
more value than many swine," and added that it is 
not necessary to suppose that our Lord sent the devils 
into the swine, but merely permitted them to go, adding 
further that if those Gadarene villagers who owned 
the swine were Jews, as may be supposed, they were 
properly punished by the loss of that which they ought 
not to have had at all. As for the evil spirits, it is 
reasonable to conclude that they found a congenial 
refuge somewhere else. With regard to their recogni- 
tion of Jesus as divine, we have Scripture assurance 
that "the devils believe and tremble." 

298. What Did Jesus Mean by "Take No 
Thought for Your Life, What Ye Shall 
Eat, neither for Your Body What Ye 
Shall Put on"? 

This was a part of the "Sermon on the Mount/' 
and Luke 12:19-34 is intended to illustrate heavenly- 
mindedness and confidence in God's providence. The 
particular passage quoted admonishes the believer not 
to be too anxiously concerned or worried about things 
that are purely temporal. It is right to make due 
provision for our own needs and the needs of those 
dependent upon us ; but when we have done so, we 
should not fret and doubt and make ourselves and 
others miserable because of our fears of coming trou- 
ble. This applies to our food, our clothing and our 
worldly affairs generally. All such doubts and wor- 
ries spring from unbelief, and are after the manner of 
the world. If we really believe and trust our heavenly 
Father, he will provide all we need. This promise, 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 299 

however, does not relieve us from the natural duty of 
making reasonable provision, though there are some 
people who mistakenly think so. The whole passage, 
broadly interpreted, means that we are to do our work 
here properly and cheerfully and to trust the Father 
for the rest and never worry, always keeping in view 
the greater duty of "seeking first the kingdom/' beside 
which all other things are insignificant. Worry in the 
sense involved in the passage is a sin against God 
since it shows absolute lack of faith in his promised 
providential care. 

299. What Is Meant by Hating Father and 
Mother and Wife for Jesus' Sake? 

In Luke 14:26 our Lord asserts his claim to our 
most loyal service and our supreme affection. In tak- 
ing up one's cross to follow him, we must be prepared 
for trials for his sake, and to break even the nearest 
and dearest ties, if need be. He must have the first 
place in our hearts. It may come to choosing between 
Christ and our nearest relations. Compare Matt. 
10 137 with the passage in Luke 14. "Hate" is not the 
preferable word, as the passage in Matthew shows. 
The passage in Luke obscures the true form of the 
expression and invests it with harshness while Mat- 
thew makes the true meaning clear, that we are to 
love him better than all else, even those who are near- 
est and dearest to us, and that this love must assert 
itself loyally at the crisis, no matter what it may cost 
us. A loyal soldier will give up all to serve his coun- 
try ; so we too must be prepared to give up all, if need 
be, to serve Christ. 



300-301 Difficult Bible Questions 

300. What Was Meant by the "Ninety and Nine 

Just Persons Which Need No Repent- 
ance" ? 

There was a tendency among the Pharisees (see 
Luke 15:2) to despise the sinner and make no effort 
for his reclamation. They prided themselves on their 
scrupulous observance of the law and on their lives 
being free from open sin. Christ met them on their 
own ground, and showed them that the recovery and 
reformation of the sinner was pleasing to God. He 
desires that none should perish, but that all should 
forsake sin and return. They thought that as there 
were no flagrant sins in their lives to be repented of, 
that they were God's favorite children. Christ showed 
them that if, as they contended, they were free from 
such sins, their self-righteous attitude was not sa 
pleasing to God as was the attitude of the man who 
knew he had done wrong, and abjured it and asked 
pardon. There was need for repentance on the part 
of those who claimed to be just persons, as Christ 
showed them over and over again; but he was teach- 
ing another lesson at that time, and was proving to 
them, that, even assuming that they were sinless, as 
they claimed, they were wrong in the position they 
took toward the sinner. 

301. What Were the "Husks That the Swine 

Did Eat"? 

The husks (see Luke 15:16), were the fruit of the 
carob tree, which is common in Palestine and is used 
by the poor as food and for the fattening of swine or 
cattle. When ripe, it is like a cooked beanpod, brown, 
glossy, and filled with seeds. Children eat it readily 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 302-303 

and seem to thrive on it. The carob is of the same 
family as the American locust tree. Its fruit is some- 
times called "St. John's bread/' as John the Baptist 
is thought to have lived upon it in the wilderness. 

302. Who Is Represented by the "Elder Broth- 

er" in the Prodigal Parable? 

Primarily, the Pharisees and chief priests, who were 
scandalized by seeing Christ associate with the lower 
classes and notorious sinners. It was a rebuke to self- 
ishness and formalism — to those who believe they have 
the spiritual right of way and that less worthy persons, 
who had been basking in the divine goodness should 
be envious or critical of the cordial welcome that is 
extended to a redeemed sinner. The lesson applies to 
people in our own day who have no sympathy with the 
work going on at rescue missions, and are sceptical 
about the conversion of evildoers. The parable was 
a reproof to such persons, but it also conveyed a 
weighty lesson as to the evil of sin. Although the 
father forgave his younger son and gave him joyful 
welcome, he said to the elder, "All that I have is thine," 
thereby intimating that the younger son's lost patri- 
mony could not be restored. The sinner is urged to 
repent, and is promised pardon, but the time he has 
w r asted, and the health he has injured, and the mischief 
his example has done, are irreparable evils. 

303. What Did Our Lord Mean by Saying 

to Peter "When Thou Art Converted 
Strengthen Thy Brethren"? 

The revised version renders the passage (Luke 
22:32): "When thou hast turned again, stablish thy 



304-305 Difficult Bible Questions 

brethren." We cannot suppose that after Peter's fall, 
he needed conversion in the sense in which we use the 
word. He needed repentance and restoration. His 
words, his actions, and the intense devotion he had 
previously shown to Christ, all indicated a man already 
converted. He fell under temptation as Christ had 
foreseen, but it was a backsliding which Christ for- 
gave. At Pentecost their experience was not con- 
version, but an enduement of power for service, notably 
the power of speaking foreign tongues. 

304. What Is Meant by the "Impassable Gulf"? 

The "impassable gulf/' in Luke 16:26, is a figure 
employed bv the Saviour in describing the eternal 
separation of the good and the evil in the future life. 
In his parables and discourses, in order to impress 
upon the minds of his hearers the central objects of 
the lessons, he invested them with such natural and 
harmonious surroundings as the subject and the occa- 
sion demanded; and to interpret such surroundings 
literally would be as futile as to translate literally 
any of the multitudinous passages, full of similar 
imagery, that abound in Oriental oratory. 

305. What Classes of Mankind Did Dives and 

Lazarus Represent? 

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 
16 119), the object was to illustrate the result of neglect 
of duty in commiserating and relieving the sufferings 
of others ; to show how wealth hardens the heart, shuts 
up the springs of human sympathy and makes the 
possessor selfish and indifferent to the wants of his 
fellowmen. The rich man was a type of those who, 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 306 

while possibly generous at times, were yet so centered 
upon worldly pleasures and self-indulgence that all 
else was a mere incident. Riches that are used only 
for our own aggrandizement and gratification become 
a curse, while the man who employs his wealth in dis- 
pensing aid and comfort to those around him and 
relieving the distressed is a blessing to the land in 
which he lives. This was the distinction which the 
Saviour drew in his parable of the division of the sheep 
and the goats, when the King repudiated those that 
stood on his left hand with the words: "Inasmuch as 
ye did it not to one of the least of these ye did it not 
to me" (Matt. 25:45). Lazarus was a type of the 
hopeless, helpless, friendless poor who are to be found 
all over the world, and whose lot could be greatly 
benefited if people of means held their wealth as a 
beneficent stewardship. Nothing can be clearer than 
that it was the Saviour's intention to emphasize by 
these parables the divine law of love and sympathy 
which he came to teach the children of men by his 
own example. 

306. What Is Meant by "Easier for Heaven and 
Earth to Pass, than One Tittle of the 
Law to Fail"? 

The law, in its literalness, endured until the time of 
John the Baptist. After him the kingdom of heaven 
was preached, the new kingdom whose law is love, 
whose king is Christ, and whose members are em- 
powered by the Spirit of Christ to keep the greater 
and more comprehensive law of love, the law which 
includes and intensifies all the details of the ancient 
moral law. The law, while in Jesus it loses some of 



306 Difficult Bible Questions 

its ceremonial details, loses nothing of its real power; 
it is no less powerful, even by the tiniest measurement, 
than it was before, Luke 16:17. Matt. 5 117-19: Christ 
fulfilled the ceremonial law; he kept its authenticated 
details, and in his death all the requirements for sacri- 
fice were satisfied and ended. While he kept the law 
and was to fulfill it, the Scribes and Pharisees were 
evading the law. By their interpretations and addi- 
tions they really deprived it of authority. Jesus told 
them they must not dodge the law but keep it. He 
even indicated that those who kept the old law most 
carefully, as Paul did, would be given high places in 
the work of his new kingdom. Matt. 19 :iy : This again 
was counsel given before the Atonement. The way of 
life then was to seek to keep the law. Rom. 3 131 : Here 
the declaration is made that the Gospel establishes the 
law. Men without the Gospel had little power to keep 
the law ; the Gospel gives them power to keep it, and 
thus gives the law its rights, establishes it, makes it pos- 
sible for its authority to assert itself. Rom. 8:7: The 
carnal mind is Paul's expression for the natural, evil, 
willful state of humanity. In that sinful, natural state 
a man cannot keep God's spiritual law. Paul uses also 
the term "old man" in the same sense. His teaching is 
that this "old man" is to be "destroyed" (Rom. 6:6), 
"put oflf" (Col. 3:8, 9; Eph. 4:22). James 2:10: 
This verse is undoubtedly true whether it is applied 
to law either before or after the Gospel. The judg- 
ment of the whole law as an institution came upon 
the man who violated any part of it; and under the 
Gospel a man is under the same obligation to keep the 
whole spirit of the moral law and to obey the words 
of Christ. We dare not disobey or displease Christ. 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 307 

I John 2 :3, 4 : These verses make a good climax. John 
tells about the "perfect love," which enables humble 
Christians really to keep Christ's law of kindness. 
That is the great secret. Paul declares : "Love is the 
fulfilling of the law." If we love Jesus perfectly we 
shall not displease him by disobedience; if we really 
love our neighbor we will do him no harm but all the 
good we can. 

307. What Is Meant by "Making Friends of the 
Mammon of Unrighteousness"? 

Probably no passage has been so often the subject 
of dispute as this in Luke 16:8, 9. The Revised 
Version renders it, "Make to yourselves friends by 
means of the mammon of unrighteousness." Luther 
thought it was a caution against avarice. Farrar re- 
garded it as an injunction to care and faithfulness. 
Taking account of the parable that precedes the pas- 
sage, it would appear that Christ was showing how a 
wicked man succeeded in getting friends at his em- 
ployer's expense. Good men were not nearly so much 
in earnest in their godly affairs as the worldly men in 
their business affairs. If they used their money in 
relieving the needs of the poor they would make friends 
in heaven. It would not open the door of heaven, but 
it would cause those who had been benefited to give 
a warm welcome, thus enhancing the joy of that state. 
Dr. William Taylor used to illustrate it thus : A man 
whose house has been broken into naturally condemns 
the burglar; but he would be justified in pointing out 
to a lazy or incompetent workman, that if he had half 
the ingenuity the burglar had displayed he would soon 
make a fortune. We cannot imagine sorrow in heaven, 



308 Difficult Bible Questions 

but if there is any man who feels regret, it is he who 
on earth saw his poor brother suffer for the lack of 
money that he might have given out of his abundance. 
In heaven he cannot ease the burden of earth, but he 
must regret that when it was in his power he did not 
do it. 

In the passage in Luke our Lord was showing how 
worldly people, "in their generation" and for their 
own selfish purposes, were prudent and sagacious in 
the worldly sense, and showed energy and determina- 
tion in carrying out their mercenary plans, none of 
which, however, were for God and eternity. They 
were types of the money-makers of that day. Even 
from them, selfish and worldly though they were, the 
children of light might learn the lesson of concentra- 
tion — not in relation to worldly, but to spiritual, things. 
It should be noted also that (verse 8) it was not Jesus, 
but the "lord" of the steward who commended the 
latter. The Revised Version corrects verse 9, which, 
accurately translated, reads : "Make to yourself 
friends by means of the mammon of unrighteousness," 
etc., implying that they, "the children of light," should 
use money not as the steward did, for selfish purposes, 
but in doing good to others. (See Luke 6:38 and 
Matt. 25:34-40.) 

308. When Jesus Asked: "Woman, What Have 
I to Do with Thee?" Was He Ungra- 
cious to His Mother? 

These seemingly harsh words (in John 2:4) ad- 
dressed by the Saviour to his mother at the feast of 
Cana, have been a subject of much speculation. In 
English they have a harsher sound than they have in 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 309-310 

the original. Thus "woman" is in Greek a mode of 
address used with respect and used even to those high 
in authority, such as queens. What the Saviour in- 
tended by this address was to call his mother's atten- 
tion to the fact that it was his work he was doing and 
not one in which she had any concern. He no doubt 
used a gentle inflection of the voice, and her remark 
to the servants showed that not only was she not hurt 
or offended, but that she fully understood. 

309. How Are We to Understand the Phrase: 

"The Zeal of Thine House Hath Eaten 
Me Up"? 

The passage in John 2:17 is an expression which 
graphically describes the tremendous and inspiring 
enthusiasm of one who is aflame with a righteous pur- 
pose. The disciples were doubtless surprised at the 
courage of One whom they had regarded as so meek 
and gentle, setting himself to a task from which the 
bravest might have shrunk. It was a new side to their 
Master's character, but thinking it over, they realized 
that it was one that the prophets had predicted of 
him. His indignation at seeing the house that had 
been dedicated to God so prostituted made him regard- 
less of his own safety. It absorbed him, or as John 
says, "ate him up" — made him forget everything else. 

310. What Is Meant by "Except a Man Be Born 

of Water and of the Spirit"? 

This passage in John 3 :5 has given rise to much con- 
troversy and theologians are by no means agreed as to 
its meaning. Our opinion is that Christ had reference 



311 Difficult Bible Questions 

to the topic then agitating such men as the one he was 
speaking to. They had a ceremony by which the 
Gentile was admitted to the privileges of Judaism, 
part of which was baptism, which signified purifica- 
tion from the sins of his old life. To the astonish- 
ment of the Pharisees, John the Baptist had insisted 
that even they were in need of baptism, just as the 
proselyte was. But as John intimated that was not 
enough. There was One coming who would baptize 
with the Holy Spirit. Therefore Nicodemus would 
understand Christ's meaning, when he spoke of being 
born of water and of the spirit. To the new birth it 
was necessary that a man be purified in heart, his past 
sins blotted out, which was symbolized by the water, 
and he must be quickened to a new life, which was 
done by the Spirit. Both are still necessary to con- 
version. They are called in theological parlance, justi- 
fication and sanctification. This element of water and 
the operation of the spirit are the subject of predic- 
tion in Ezekiel 36:25-27. 

311. What Is the "New Birth"? 

It is an expression frequently used instead of "re- 
generation/' to express the change from the natural 
state of sin to the new spiritualized life of the Chris- 
tian. It is dying unto sin and being born again unto 
righteousness, a complete transformation of our moral 
nature, a new heart. Following after conversion and 
justification, the new birth or regeneration brings 
about a complete change of heart (see Heb. 10:22; 
Gal. 6:15; II Cor. 5:17; Col. 3:9; Eph. 4:22-24 and 
other passages). 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 312-314 

312. What Is the "Witness of the Spirit"? 

The "witness of the Spirit" is the inward assurance 
which the believer enjoys of his filial relation to God, 
namely, that the Holy Spirit witnesses to and with his 
spirit that he is a child of God, and that his sins are 
forgiven. The immediate results of this witness of the 
Spirit are set forth in Gal. 5 .22, 23. 

313. In What Sense Is Meekness a Virtue? 

It is a comprehensive virtue. It includes gentleness, 
readiness to do good to all men, to walk humbly be- 
fore God and man, and not to overrate ourselves; to 
be loving as well as lowly-minded, not given to worldly 
ambition, but zealous to yield willing obedience to 
God's will ; quiet, self-possessed, never quarrelsome nor 
disputatious. See Matt. 5:5; Matt. 11:29; II Cor. 
10:1; I Peter 3:4; I Cor. 6:7; Rom. 12:19; I Peter 
2 119-22 ; Rev. 21 -.7. Thus the meek, though the "only 
rightful occupants of a foot of ground or a crust of 
bread here," are the heirs of all things hereafter. 

314. Why Did Jesus Give an Evasive Answer 

to the Question "Who Art Thou"? 

When the question was prompted by mere curiosity, 
or when it was asked with the object of getting evi- 
dence from his own lips for the purpose of prosecut- 
ing him, it would have been unwise to satisfy the ques- 
tioner. When, however, he was speaking to the 
woman of Samaria (John 4:26), there was no am- 
biguity: "I that speak unto thee am he." Under 
the adjuration of the High Priest, too, he answered 
plainly (Mark 14:62) : "Art thou the Christ the Son 
of the Blessed ? And Jesus said, I am." 



315-317 Difficult Bible Questions 

315. What Were the "Greater Works" to Which 

Jesus Referred that His Disciples Would 
Do? 

Christ always objected to being regarded as a mere 
wonder-worker. He wanted the people to look upon 
his miracles merely as his credentials, and to argue 
from them that he who could do such things was sent 
from God. The miracles were intended to lead them 
to trust in him for eternal life. Consequently when, 
as he said, he went to the Father and the Holy Spirit 
was given to his disciples, they were enabled to do 
those greater works, such as the conversions at Pente- 
cost, which Christ held to be of a far higher order than 
miracles (John 14:12). 

316. Do Public Prayers Violate Christ's Injunc- 

tion to Enter into the Closet When We 
Pray? 

No. Christ referred to the ostentatious devotion of 
the Pharisees who chose a public place for their devo- 
tions, with the motive that men might see them and 
honor them as pious people (John 16:23). There 
are many intimations in the New Testament that God 
approves of his people meeting together for prayer. 

317. What Did Christ Refer to When He Asked 

Peter Whether He Loved Him More 
than These? 

Peter had made himself conspicuous by his protesta- 
tions of affection, as when he had said (Mark 14:29), 
"Although all should be offended, yet will not I." The 
form in which Christ put the question would appear 
to imply a delicate reminder of Peter's boast. Did he 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 318-319 

indeed love Christ more than did the other disciples? 
When Peter again avowed his love, Christ gave him 
a new commission to feed or shepherd the sheep and 
lambs (John 21 :is). A commission not of authority, 
but of service. 

318. What Did Jesus Mean by "If I Will that 

He Tarry till I Come"? 

This passage in- John 21 :20, 22 is frequently mis- 
understood. John alone of all the disciples survived 
the destruction of Jerusalem and so witnessed the be- 
ginning of that series of events which belong to what 
are known as the "last days" of that particular age. 
He may thus be said to have witnessed the foundation 
of the kingdom in men's hearts, in a greater measure 
than any of his associates. The language of Jesus (in 
verse 22) was not a prediction, but a question in which 
there was, however, an assertion of his divine power 
to dispose of human life as he willed. It has been 
made the basis of a tradition which treats it mistakenly 
as a prophecy. 

319. What Is the Lesson Conveyed in the Pas- 

sage on Footwashing in John 13:10? 

The saying like the act was symbolical. A different 
word is used in the original to express the washing, 
in the phrase "he that is washed/' from that in the 
other phrase about the washing of the feet. The 
former refers to the bath, or the washing of the entire 
body, while the latter refers to the rinsing of the feet, 
as of one who had soiled them in walking from the 
bath. The body having been washed, he was clean 
every whit, when the dirt subsequently collected on the 
feet was removed. The teaching is obvious. The 



320 Difficult Bible Questions 

Christian who falls into sin does not need another re- 
generation, but the cleansing of these later sins. 

320, Are the Verses "For God So Loved the 
World," Etc., the Words of Christ or John? 

Some scholars have thought that John wrote those 
verses as a commentary and that they were not spoken 
by Christ ; but the number of such scholars was small 
and has become smaller as the discussion proceeded. 
Their theory was based on the fact that there is a 
change of tense in the verses in question; that the 
phrase "onlybegotten" was a favorite one with John ; 
and that no further interruption from Nicodemus is 
reported. These reasons do not appear to us of serious 
weight. The change of tense occurs only when the 
topic requires it, and if the words are Christ's the 
change would occur as certainly as if they were John's. 
The phrase, "onlybegotten" was, it is true, a favorite 
one with John, but probably because he had heard it 
so frequently from his Master. And as to the third 
reason, it is not likely that Nicodemus broke in on 
that wonderful revelation, or that if he did, John would 
interrupt it to report his questions. We cannot be- 
lieve that Christ ended his talk with the fifteenth verse, 
because if he had done so, Nicodemus would not have 
heard the essential facts. Neither would statements so 
authoritative have been made by John, unless he had 
distinctly indicated that it was he and not Christ who 
was speaking. The subject was fully discussed some 
years ago and scholars so eminent as Alford, Lange 
and Stier then expressed their conviction that the 
whole passage, from the beginning of the tenth to the 
end of the twenty-first verse, was spoken by Christ. 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 321-322 

321, How Should We Interpret "Take No 

Thought for the Morrow"? 

Jesus did not have a word to say against industry or 
prudence. His words in this instance were directed 
against the anxiety, worry, and foreboding which afflict 
so many people. Trust in God, he said in effect, do 
not spoil your lives by this distressing fear. At the 
worst, you will have clothing and food. Do not be 
grasping or selfish, but give to those in need. Solo- 
mon said a similar thing (Prov. II 124). The one man 
whom Christ advised to sell all he had and give to the 
poor, was a boastful man who wanted to be perfect. 
Jesus saw the fault in his character and told him that 
his way to perfection was to eliminate that fault. To 
other men he probably gave no such advice. He laid 
his finger on the weak place. The apostles, it is true, 
were bidden leave all and follow him; but that was 
necessary to the work to which they were called; yet 
even with them Peter seems to have kept his house 
as did John. 

322. Who Are the "False Prophets in Sheep's 

Clothing"? 

The warning is against teachers who come, claiming 
to be authorized interpreters of the mind of God and 
expounders of his Word, yet who are false leaders, 
having no spiritual light in themselves and being un- 
fitted to guide others into the light of truth. Coming 
in sheep's clothing implies that they present a plausible 
exterior, their lips filled with smooth, persuasive 
words; but they do not teach nor do they themselves 
know the Gospel of Jesus. They teach instead a man- 
made Gospel, and make a great show of liberal ideas. 

14 



323 Difficult Bible Questions 

The "old paths" they discard for new ways of reach- 
ing heaven. They cast doubt upon the essentials of 
the faith and teach the doctrines of error. Any teacher 
who does not hold fast to the cardinal points of the 
Gospel, or who does not emphasize the divine nature 
and the mediatorial office of Christ and his sacrifice and 
atonement; who would exalt works above faith; who 
belittles the importance of the revealed Word, and 
casts doubt upon its genuineness and authority; who 
compromises with sin and the weakness of our nature ; 
who leads his flock to regard with doubt all that per- 
tains to the invisible realm of faith and the super- 
natural; who attaches more importance to the opera- 
tions of the human mind than to all else — such a per- 
son is not calculated to lead others in the way of life 
everlasting. It is therefore of the very first impor- 
tance that the pastor who is chosen for a church should 
himself be a Christian, living the Christian life, else, 
however sincere he may be in his efforts, he will not 
be able to lead others aright. 

323. What Is the Parable of the Ten Virgins 
Intended to Teach? 

The duty of watchfulness and unworldliness. In 
the East, to this day, at a wedding ceremony, the ap- 
proach of the bridegroom's procession is heralded by 
the cry, "The bridegroom cometh," and those who have 
been invited come out of their houses to join it, and 
go with him to attend the ceremony. In Christ's 
time, apparently, they were expected to carry lamps. 
All the virgins in the parable slept while the bride- 
groom tarried; but five of them were prepared with 
oil to trim their lamps, and the others were not. Thus, 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 324-325 

when the bridegroom came they were ready to meet 
him, while the others were not. Professing Christians 
would be similarly divided if Christ were to come to 
the world now. Some would rejoice and be ready to 
welcome him, while others, who are leading worldly 
lives and are not cultivating Christian character, would 
be unprepared and would be stricken with consterna- 
tion. 

324. What Is Meant to Be Taught by the Case 

of the Evil Spirit Which Brought into 
the Unguarded Heart "Seven Other 
Spirits More Wicked than Himself '? 

The corresponding passage, Matt. 12 :43~45, appears 
to indicate that primarily the meaning applied to the 
Jewish nation. It had repented or reformed under 
the preaching of the Baptist, "cleaned up/' as the 
modern phrase has it, but had not gone on as it should, 
to acceptance of Christ and righteousness toward God. 
The negative goodness was to be followed by a worse 
national condition, in which the Lord would be cru- 
cified. It is as if a nation was led to forsake idols, 
but instead of becoming Christian became atheistic. 
In the individual the reference is to a man weaned 
from some besetting sin, but not taking the grace of 
God into his heart, and replacing the love of sin with 
love of God and holiness, leaves the heart unoccupied 
ready for a return of the sin he had quitted, or the fall 
into something still worse. 

325. What Are We to Understand by "Many 

Are Called, but Few Are Chosen"? 

This is one of Christ's terse and memorable say- 
ings, several times uttered. It is interpreted to mean 



326 Difficult Bible Questions 

that many receive the invitation of the Gospel who 
never reach the stage of spiritual progress where they 
can be said to be "chosen" to salvation through sancti- 
fication of the Spirit -and belief on the truth." (See 
II Thes. 2:13.) The "chosen" were those who were 
set apart for special duty to become living examples 
of devoted service. Paul was such an illustration of 
God's sovereignty in choosing his instrument. It 
should not be held to imply, however, that salvation is 
forfeited, except through the fault and wickedness of 
those who are rejected. Christ's death was all-suffi- 
cient, and it is not the divine will that any should perish. 
Many controversies have arisen over this passage, but 
we can safely rest upon the language of the Saviour 
himself, who said : "Whosoever will may come" 
. . . . and "Him that cometh I will in no wise 
cast out." This promise is absolute and assures us 
that saving grace is within the reach of all who will 
forsake sin and accept salvation through Christ. The 
broad interpretation of the passage would seem to be 
that while many are called, or set in the way of salva- 
tion, the invitation alone does not save them; they 
must themselves comply with all the conditions. Thus 
a means is provided for the salvation of all, except 
those who willfully reject it. This is the true grace of 
the Gospel and it is so clear and unmistakable that no 
human doctrine or interpretation can change it. 

326. Why Did Jesus Tell His Disciples to Buy 
Swords ? 

He wished them to be forewarned of the world's 
hostility to the Gospel. He spoke in figurative lan- 
guage, as he frequently did, and they, misunderstand- 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 327-329 

ing him, interpreted his words literally, supposing he 
alluded to present defense. Seeing that they misin- 
terpreted his language about the swords, he closed the 
conversation with the words : "It is enough." His 
healing of the high priest's servant's ear simply em- 
phasized the fact that he had not intended to counsel 
physical violence. 

327. Was There Heartlessness in Jesus* Words: 

"Let the Dead Bury Their Dead"? 

No. He meant to convey that the proclaiming of the 
Kingdom of God was more important even than to 
bury the dead — an office which could be performed by 
those spiritually dead as well as by one who had been 
called to the Master's service. He did not belittle the 
office of burial, but simply put it in contrast with the 
more imperative duty of preaching the Gospel. 

328. In What Sense Is "The Kingdom of God 

Is within You"? 

The words "the kingdom of God is within you" are 
to be interpreted in the sense that those who follow 
Christ and believe in him as Saviour, and whose lives 
are guided by his example, have already in this life a 
part and share in his kingdom, which is eternal. 

329. What Is the "Sin Unto Death"? 

It is believed to be the sin against the Holy Spirit 
which tends toward or is destined to result in spiritual 
death. Several commentators make it quite distinct 
from what is known as the "unpardonable sin" — which 
is believed to have been attributing the Spirit's marvel- 
ous work to Satanic agencies. Alford makes it the act 



330-331 Difficult Bible Questions 

of "openly denying Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of 
God." Such willful deniers are not to be received into 
one's house (see II John verses 10 and n). The 
apostle's meaning is evidently that this chief sin is one 
by which faith and love are destroyed and the new 
life killed by a palpable rejection of grace. When such 
a person knowingly thrusts spiritual life from him, 
no human intercession can avail. See James 5 114, 18; 
Matt. 12:31, 32, as to the obstinate rejection of the 
Holy Ghost's plain testimony to the Divine Messiah. 
Jesus on the cross pleaded for those who knew not 
what they did in crucifying him, not for those willfully 
resisting grace. 

330. What Is to Be Understood by Putting "New 

Cloth on Old Garment"? 

The new is really the unshrunken cloth which, when 
it became wet and dried, would draw and strain the 
old garment, making a greater rent. The meaning was 
that at that time the most intelligent Jews, such as 
Nicodemus, were hailing Christ as a reformer. They 
were mistaken. His religion was not a new patch on 
the old. The old could not be mended, but must give 
place to his new religion. A specimen of this futile 
attempt was seen in the struggle to force the old 
Jewish laws on the Gentiles, which was repudiated 
(see Acts 15 :i-2i). 

331. Did an Angel Actually Come Down and 

Disturb the Pool at Bethesda? 

It should be noted that the evangelist, in giving an 
account of the pool, does nothing more than to state 



Jesus — Sayings of Jesus 331 

the popular belief (probably a legend) as he found it, 
without vouching for it except so far as it explained 
the invalid's presence there. Jesus simply put aside 
as of no moment the alleged healing virtues of the 
pool, and aroused the man's faith in that power which 
alone could minister to his need. 



332-333 



A CHRISTIAN'S PROBLEMS 



332. Is Being Killed in an Accident a Punish- 

ment? 

No, it is not right even to think such a thing, and 
it is a gross slander on God to say it. Jesus was very 
explicit on that subject. (See Luke 13:1-5.) The 
tower of Siloam had fallen and had killed eighteen per- 
sons and Jesus was told of it. He took occasion to 
disabuse his hearers' minds of the idea that accidents 
were to be regarded as punishments. There was an- 
other case in which the question was put to him 
directly. He was asked who had sinned, a blind man 
or his parents, that he w r as born blind, and he answered, 
neither (John 9:2, 3). The whole book of Job is 
devoted to the subject. Job's friends thought that his 
affliction was punishment for hidden sin. God him- 
self interferes to reprove them. It is a wicked and a 
cruel thing to add to the affliction of a bereaved family 
by suggesting that their loss is a punishment of the 
dead or the living. 

333. Should We Endure Uncongenial Associa- 

tion? 

In I Cor. 7:15 the bondage of uncongenial associa- 
tion is meant. In Corinth, unbelievers were of a par- 
ticularly vicious type. The newly converted Christian 
would be pained day by day by the conduct of an un- 
believing husband or wife. The members of the 
church inquired of Paul whether it was their duty to 



A Christian's Problems 334 

separate in such cases. He advised their remaining 
together, and for the believer to try to lead the un- 
believer to Christ. But if the unbeliever went away, 
the believer was not bound to seek a renewal of rela- 
tions. Let the unbeliever go. There was no compul- 
sion in cases requiring the believer and the unbeliever 
to live together. 

334* How Can One Have Absolute Assurance 
of Forgiveness of Sin? 

The absolute inward assurance of forgiveness is to 
be obtained by a perfect surrender of our lives to God. 
If this is done in prayer, and without one reservation, 
the Holy Ghost performs its part as surely as God's 
promises stand. There is an expansion, an uplifting, 
an inward illumination that ever after establishes an 
assurance of forgiveness of sin to the individual soul. 
It is "the Spirit witnessing with our spirit that we are 
the sons of God." This is the new birth. This assur- 
ance of God's forgiveness of sins is given in answer to 
prayer through Jesus, and is communicated to our 
souls by the Holy Spirit. The degree or clearness of 
this assurance is according to our faith. Doubts cloud 
this consciousness of God's favor. The Holy Spirit 
imparts to the believer an assurance of pardon and 
adoption into God's family. "Ye have received the 
Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The 
Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are 
the children of God." "He that believeth on the Son 
of God hath the witness in himself." God "that can- 
not lie" says through the inspired apostle, "If we 
confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us 
our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 



335 Difficult Bible Questions 

When the conditions are fully met, faith springs up in 
the human heart, and to believe "that my sins are for- 
given" is without effort, the same as to breathe. Some 
obtain "absolute inward assurance" of sins forgiven 
more readily than others. Some souls are most trust- 
ful. The doubting and despondent may never in this 
life have assurance "absolute," yet even these may 
possess "assurance." The first step to "absolute assur- 
ance" is to believe that it is not assurance that saves, 
but faith. We may not see the bridge over which the 
train is safely carrying us. So faith saves, though 
we may not feel safe. The second step is to trust 
oneself to Christ, as a child lets his father take him in 
his arms. The third step is to willingly do and bear 
whatever Christ imposes. Absolute conviction will be 
found in your own heart after you have questioned it 
and can truthfully say these words : "I believe in and 
love the Lord Jesus Christ, enough to lay down my 
life, if need be, for his sake. I love him well enough, 
to live as long as he wants me to, a life of idleness 
or of labor, a life in prison or a life of freedom, a life 
of suffering or a life free from all care, a life wholly 
devoid of companionship, wealth, worldly pleasures and 
friends. I love him well enough to go down to my 
grave, if need be, branded by the world." When you 
can freely give such a pledge, then you will feel the 
blessed peace enter your heart, and God will come and 
talk with you. 

335. Was the Atonement an Old Testament 
Belief? 

The expectation of the coming Messiah, who should 
redeem his people and should suffer for their sakes, 



A Christian's Problems 336 

is as old as the beginnings of Hebrew nationality. 
See Isa. 53; Zech. 11:13. The idea of propitiation, 
reconciliation and expiation was associated with his 
coming, and although substitution is not mentioned it 
is implied. In connection with the sacrificial offerings 
similar terms are sometimes used, but the broader view 
of vicarious sacrifice, with special reference to the 
Messianic atonement, is most fully set forth in Isa. 53. 
The Messianic mission was the salvation of the race 
(Isa. 11). This expectation was not wholly confined 
to the Jewish people. The Samaritans held it; the 
Magi knew of it ; even in the days of Melchizedek and 
Job it was understood by inquiring souls (Job 19:25). 
The very first recorded Scriptural allusion to it is in 
Gen. 49:10. See also Isa. 9:1-7; Isa. 40; Micah 5:2. 
There were periods in Jewish history during which the 
Messianic predictions and expectations temporarily 
ceased, but they were never wholly extinguished. It 
should be admitted, however, that while some of the 
Jewish Targumistic writings refer to a suffering 
Messiah, the greater number deal with a powerful and 
conquering Messiah. Faith in God, belief in his word 
and a willing obedience were accounted for righteous- 
ness in the old dispensation. See Gen. 15 :8 and Rom. 
4 :3~6, 20, 25 and other passages. Incidentally it may 
be mentioned that Job is supposed to have lived about 
the time of Isaac, some 1800 B. C., Daniel 600 B. C., 
Micah 950 B. C, Isaiah 750 B. C., Zechariah, 520 B. C. 

336. Is the Efficacy of the Atonement Limit- 
ed to Those Who Accept It? 

The subject has been discussed for generations, 
and with no practical benefit. It brings up the old 



337 Difficult Bible Questions 

and profitless question of foreordination, which is bet- 
ter left alone. It is sufficient for us to know that who- 
soever avails himself of the offer of salvation through 
Christ will be saved. If the ruler of a rebellious peo- 
ple proclaimed amnesty to all who laid down their 
arms, it would apply to all who complied with the 
conditions, but those who did not comply would have 
no part in the amnesty. The limit would not be in the 
offer but in the disposition of the people. 

337. Is Celibacy Commanded in the Bible? 

Certainly not, and no enforced celibacy was known 
in the Church until long after the apostolic age. Chry- 
sostom opposed it, Polycarp, Eusebius, Cyprian, and 
other early writers mention priestly marriage as a 
common thing, and in fact, during the first three cen- 
turies there is no evidence of celibacy as a rule of 
clerical life. The Council of Trent (1545-1563) estab- 
lished the rule of celibacy. It originated officially with 
the edict of Siricius, bishop of Rome (A. D. 385), 
who argued that the reason why priests in Old Testa- 
ment times were allowed to marry was that they might 
be taken exclusively from the tribe of Levi ; but as no< 
such exclusive limitation prevailed in the Roman 
Catholic priesthood, marriage was unnecessary and 
inconsistent with the priestly office. The Roman bish- 
ops who succeeded Siricius sustained this contention 
and a long line of Popes confirmed it in their decretals. 
For centuries, however, there was a continuous strug- 
gle over it among the Romanist clergy and many 
lived openly in wedlock in spite of the decrees. Final- 
ly, about the sixteenth century it became a fixed rule 



A Christian's Problems 338-339 

of the Roman Church. It is a system which ever since 
its introduction has given rise to many abuses. 

338. How Far May People Be Compelled to 

Accept Christianity? 

It is the mission of Christianity to preach the Gospel 
to all nations, but this does not imply the employment 
of force to compel a people to adopt the Christian 
religion against their will. In our own land, freedom 
of worship is guaranteed under the constitution. Any 
attempt to force the adoption of a religion would be 
a violation of the constitution. Lawful persuasion 
may be used, and there is, of course, no bar to dis- 
cussion, but the individual and the community must be 
left wholly free. The attempt to force religion upon 
any people, and especially to force it upon any nation 
as such with the ultimate end in view of establishing 
a religious power in the State or nation, is in conflict 
with Christ's own declaration that his kingdom is "not 
of this world." 

339. What Is a Spiritual Church? 

In order to have a spiritual church, it is essential 
that there should be spiritually-minded leaders, men of 
ripe Christian experience and earnest faith, who can 
communicate their own enthusiasm for service and 
soul-winning to their fellow members. The true 
spiritual church is an active, working church, where 
the congregation vie with each other not merely in 
living up to their privileges in the matter of church 
attendance, but in active personal effort in their neigh- 
borhood, drawing others under the influence of the 
Gospel and organizing themselves for works of char- 



340 Difficult Bible Questions 

ity and kindness. An inactive church cannot have 
spiritual growth. The church should be directly con- 
nected with the work of home and foreign missions, 
hospital and sick visitation, shepherding of the chil- 
dren, keeping up the Sunday School, and doing good 
at every opportunity. Neglect of prayer meetings 
marks a decline of spirituality in a church which no 
amount of social attractions will repair. The ideal 
church is one in which every member has a share in 
the general activities of the organization. This means 
all, large and small, young and old, learned and ignor- 
ant for too often the educated try to obtain an as- 
cendency. Intellectuality is not always an aid to spir- 
itual life ; on the contrary, there are very many cases 
in which it has proved a barrier. One does not per- 
ceive God through the intellect alone, and this is shown 
in the fact that many of the most spiritual natures have 
been found among the simple and unlearned. Intel- 
lectual vanity and self-sufficiency — an overweening 
confidence in the powers of the finite mind — are among 
the strongest impediments to faith. "Ye must become 
as a little child/' 

340. Will the Whole World Be Converted Be- 
fore the Second Coming? 

There is nothing in Scripture to make one believe 
that the whole world will be converted before the 
Second Coming. On the contrary, we are told that 
up to and immediately preceding that event, there will 
be widespread apostasy and spiritual decline, with 
false Christs and misleaders of men. We should not 
overlook the fact, however, that the duty is imposed 
on all Christians to spread the Gospel throughout the 



A Christian's Problems 341-342 

world, and to do everything that lies in our power for 
the conversion of the nations, but the complete harvest 
can come only in God's own time. 

341. Does the Rule Laid Down by James 2:10 

Imply that All Crimes Are Equal in 
Guilt? 

Xo ; it means that the violation of any of God's 
laws places the offender in the category of sinners. 
The writer is arguing with proud, self-righteous peo- 
ple who take credit to themselves for not committing 
certain sins. He shows them that in committing other 
sins that are not accounted by men so disgraceful, they 
are nevertheless sinners against God as surely as if 
they had committed the sins they condemn. A man 
who tells a lie has broken God's law and in that respect 
is under condemnation as the man is who commits a 
murder. Xot that both are equally heinous, but that 
both stand on an equality in not being able to plead 
innocence before God. Both are sinners in need of 
mercy. 

342. Why Did Paul Advise Timothy to Drink 

Wine? 

We suppose he thought it would do him good. He 
evidently believed that Timothy's ailment, whatever 
it was, would be relieved by a stimulant. Perhaps if 
Paul had known as much as modern physicians do of 
the human constitution, he would not have given the 
advice. Drinking habits, in our day, do so much harm, 
that if he were alive now, we do not think he would 
counsel a young minister to drink wine. He was too 



343 Difficult Bible Questions 

much concerned about the general good to suggest an 
example which would be mischievous. 

343. Can Evil Emanate from God? 

This is a topic that has caused much controversy. 
Evil is the negation of good. God is the source of all 
goodness, and no evil dwells in him; but with the 
withdrawal of his guiding and protecting spirit from 
man, evil comes. In I Sam. 16:14, we are distinctly- 
told that this was the case with Saul. The Spirit 
of God had forsaken him, and then his soul was an 
easy prey to the Spirit of Evil. He was hypochondriac 
and his distemper was aggravated by his wicked 
temper and his consciousness that as the result of his 
own sin and folly he was in danger of losing his 
throne. The passage in Is. 45 :J "I form the light and 
create darkness ; I make peace and create evil" does 
not refer to moral evil, but to discord or disturbance 
in the order of the universe as a whole. Thus, as 
light and darkness are opposites, so in the next clause 
of the verse, peace and disorder are opposites. Evil 
is the negation of good and distinction must be made 
between natural and moral evil. Among natural evils 
are wars, earthquakes, storms, plagues or whatever 
disturbs or disarranges the perfection of natural 
things ; whereas moral evil is thought, word or act 
that is contrary to the revealed law of God and is 
therefore sin. It is the peculiarity of Hebrew writing 
to delight in contrasts. You find a long series of them 
in Proverbs. They are always of the same nature of 
parallelisms. Thus, in the passage in Isaiah 45, the 
prophet used the converse of the peace he has been 
talking of. We should say war or physical disturbance. 



A Christian's Problems 344 

He uses the word evil in the sense of punishment or 
misery. It is the state of the nation that he is con- 
sidering. It serves God and is faithful to him and is 
prosperous. The prosperity comes from God. It de- 
serts him and disobeys him and is punished by captiv- 
ity and oppression. They also come from God. In 
that sense he creates the condition which they regard 
as an evil. There is a similar argument in Romans 
ii \22. Moral evil he never creates. 

344. Does God Choose People for Destruction? 

Peter was right in saying (II Peter 3:16) that in 
Paul's epistles there were some things hard to be 
understood. The verses in Rom. 9:15-20 are con- 
fessedly difficult. They appear to be contradictory to 
the conclusion which Paul reaches at the close of his 
argument (Romans 11 132) "God hath concluded them 
all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all." 
Perhaps we would understand his argument better 
if we knew more of the people to whom he was writ- 
ing. It may have been, that among them were some 
who had the audacity to criticize God's method of gov- 
ernment, and Paul wanted them to realize that God 
was not under obligation to save any who rebelled 
against him. That fact we must admit. No man can 
claim as a right that God shall forgive him. We know, 
from Christ's own words and from Paul's own letters, 
that God does forgive all who come to him in peni- 
tence. But when a man defies him, as Pharaoh did, 
Paul contends that God makes an example of him, that 
men of all times may see what is the end of defiance 
of his rule. We do not imagine that Paul meant that 
God directly hardened Pharaoh, but that the hardening 

15 



345-346 Difficult Bible Questions 

was the effect of the removal of the plagues and was 
"permitted/' The very mercy had the opposite effect 
on the man that it should have had. Pharaoh misun- 
derstood it, as men now misunderstand God's long- 
suffering, and think they will escape altogether. Our 
side of the question is not God's sovereignty, which 
we can never understand, but the sublime fact that 
"whosoever will" may come to Christ and be saved. 

345. Does Satan Interfere with God's Children? 

Paul, in common with the people of his time, had 
a firm belief in the interference of Satanic influence 
in human life. Not only in I Thess. 2:18, but in II 
Cor. 12 17, he refers to it. The "thorn in the flesh," 
whatever that affliction was, he regarded as a mes- 
senger from Satan. The writer of Samuel took an- 
other view. He said the evil spirit that troubled Saul 
was from the Lord. (See I Sam. 16:14, 18:10 and 
other passages.) The writer of the book of Job thought 
that the evil fortune might be the work of Satan under 
express permission of God. The origin of evil has 
always been a mystery and it is not solved yet. Though 
we cannot understand it, we may be sure that vexa- 
tions and hindrances and temptations do not come to 
us without the divine permission, and they are in- 
tended to strengthen the character. Paul himself said 
that all things work together for good to them' that 
love God. (Rom. 8:28.) 

346. What Was the "Sentence of the Serpent"? 

The "sentence of the serpent" as the passage in Gen. 
3:15 is called, was a far-reaching one. The prophecy 
concerning the posterity of the woman, who were to 



A Christian's Problems 347 

be at enmity with the seed of the serpent, "points to 
the continual struggle between the woman's offspring 
and the grand enemy of God and man — the mighty 
conflict, of which this world has ever since been the 
theater/' between sin and righteousness. In the clause 
in question perhaps the more accurate reading would 
be : "I will permit enmity between thee and the wom- 
an," etc. God is not the author of evil; but when his 
holy Spirit is withdrawn from a man or a community 
or a nation, evil comes and takes the place of good. 

347. Who Created the Devil? 

This question has puzzled theologians for ages, and 
has occasioned discussions which have had no profita- 
ble issue. There is no source of reliable information 
but that contained in Scripture and that is of a very 
meagre character. See Rev. 12 :y, 9, and II Peter 
2 14. The inference from those and other passages 
is that Satan was created by God as man was, that he 
was pure and innocent, but, like man, liable to fall. 
That he did fall and was cast out of heaven. It can- 
not be conceived that God created an evil being, 
though, as we know to our sorrow, he did create a 
being who became evil. The whole subject is wrapped 
in mystery and the Bible writers are more intent 
on the practical question of teaching us how to be 
delivered from the power of Satan than in giving us 
his biography. The less we know of him and have to 
do with him the better for us. That Satan was an 
angel of high estate, who fell through ambition, lead- 
ing to rebellion, is the concrete form of a history which 
is a combination of Scripture and tradition. See John 
8:44; Matt. 4:1-11; Matt. 25:41; Luke 8:12; Luke 



348 Difficult Bible Questions 

10:18; Acts 13:10; Eph. 6:11; I Pet. 5:8; I John 3:8 
and other passages. In Job he is the adversary and the 
tempter. See also I Chron. 21:1. Milton the poet 
described him as "the prince or ruler of the demons." 
See Dan. 7 :io and Jude 6. These passages leave much 
unexplained and conjecture here is useless. His final 
overthrow and punishment are predicted in Rev. 20. 

348. Are We As Christians Bound to Keep the 
Ten Commandments? 

The Christian is not under the law but under grace. 
That however does not free him from obligation. More 
is expected of him in the way of righteousness than if 
he were under the law. You lay down rules for your 
child and make him obey, but when he grows to man- 
hood he is free from your rules. Do you not expect 
that he will behave without rules? That was your 
object in training him, to produce in him a disposition 
which would keep him right when he became his own 
master. Now, which of the Commandments do you 
as a Christian, free from law, feel that you are at 
liberty to break? You would keep them out of love 
for God, whether you were bound or not. As to 
commands and injunctions of the Old Testament, 
when the question was considered in the first apos- 
tolic council (Acts 15 15-29) it was decided that Gentile 
converts were not to be bound by the Levitical law. 
Christ, also, in his sermon on the mount, said: "It 
hath been said by them of old time," and went on to 
say, "but I say unto you," etc., clearly regarding the 
law as it stood to be subject to his abrogation. It 
must not, however, be supposed that the Christian dis- 
pensation is less stringent. The man who obeys Christ 



A Christian's Problems 349-350 

is under obligations higher than those of the law. As 
an example, the law forbade murder and Christ for- 
bade the anger that leads to murder. As love is higher 
than law, so Christ, by setting his people free of law 
and placing them under the obligation of love, incul- 
cated a higher morality. 

349. Is the Backslider's Case Hopeless? 

The passage in Heb. 6 :6, like that about the un- 
pardonable sin, has caused much discussion and ap- 
prehension. The description in the previous verses 
of the persons to whom it refers, appears to indicate 
a condition of enlightenment and of personal expe- 
rience such as some attain who do not become true 
Christians, but return to the world. The writer ap- 
pears to be speaking of a fact rather than enunciating 
a doctrine. Every Christian minister and worker 
knows how difficult it is to win a backslider, especially 
one who has become a scoffer. The truth seems to 
have no effect upon them. Any person who fears hav- 
ing fallen into that condition can disprove the theory 
by going to Christ and asking forgiveness. Christ 
will receive him. The very fact of his being distressed 
about it indicates that he has not fallen beyond hope. 
The man who has need to fear, is he who does not 
trouble about his state. 

350. Is There Any Hope for the Backslider? 

See Heb. 10:26-29; John 6:37; Heb. 6:4-6, and I 
John 1 :g. The passage in Heb. 10 refers to those who 
sin after receiving "full knowledge" of the truth 
(see I Tim. 2:4), and who after having been "enlight- 
ened" and tasting a certain measure of .grace and the 
spirit of truth (see John 14:17-29), apostatize to 



351 



Difficult Bible Questions 



Judaism or infidelity. Such is not a sin of ignorance 
or error, but the result of moral wickedness or a de- 
liberate sin against the Spirit — a presumptuous sin 
against Christ's redemption for us and the spirit of 
grace in us. Having fully known the one sacrifice 
for sin, and having a certain experience of the efficacy 
of that sacrifice, they have now rejected it. In Heb. 
6:4, 6, the same idea is emphasized. Such sinners 
crucify Christ anew, instead of crucifying the world 
(see Gal. 6:14). The passage in John 6:37 expresses 
the glorious certainty of eternal life to those who be- 
lieve and stand firm — those who are given him of the 
Father and come to him with full surrender. Not the 
simply willing, but the actually faithful ; not the wav- 
erers, but the true and abiding, are to realize the 
promise. In the backslider there has been no complete 
dedication, otherwise there would be no apostasy. 
I John 1 :g emphasizes the assurance of forgiveness 
and acceptance of the faithful ones. Concerning the 
possibilities of a return to Christ on the part of a 
backslider, we can only assert that what to man may 
and often does seem impossible, is possible with God, 
and that his grace is boundless. Peter backslid in a 
most grievous way, and yet was forgiven. By a miracle 
of divine grace, the backslider, although beyond hu- 
man hope of recall, may in God's abundant mercy find 
refuge and forgiveness. 



351. Does Every Good Thing Come from God? 

It is impossible to say just what impulses proceed 
from self and what are the direct influence of God in 
the unconverted soul. Some impulses to kindness 
seem purely natural, such as the instinctive care of a 



A Christian's Problems 352 

mother for her child, which is found in beasts as well 
as in human kind. The affection of animals for peo- 
ple, like the affection of a dog for his master, is some- 
times tremendously strong. While all these noble and 
beautiful things come from God, they do not neces- 
sarily indicate the presence of God in the soul. He 
has planted certain admirable traits both in the in- 
stincts of animals and the minds of men ; he also has, 
of course, the power of communicating with men, 
speaking to their minds and consciences by his Spirit 
and by his Word. Reason is higher than instinct and 
conscience is higher than both, but even conscience 
may not mean that God is dwelling in the soul. Only 
when it is enlightened or quickened by the divine 
power does it become a safe guide. Conscience, there- 
fore, is not so much the voice of God as the human 
faculty of hearing that voice. But at conversion God's 
Spirit comes into a man's soul. He is no longer out- 
side, but within; mystically though actually linked to 
the man himself. The great change then is that a 
man finds himself loving God, eager to get his mes- 
sages, anxious to please him. The impulses to do 
good, instead of being vague and w x eak, become defi- 
nite and intense. The converted man feels that God 
is within him, making suggestions, awakening holy, 
unselfish, beautiful desires, and giving him power to 
carry out these good desires in vigorous and success- 
ful action. 

352. Why Do Some Passages of the New Tes- 
tament Use the Neuter Pronoun in Refer- 
ring to the Holy Spirit? 

In the New Testament references to the Holy Spirit 
the masculine form is used almost without exception. 



353 Difficult Bible Questions 

In John 14:26 and 15 126 the relative pronoun "which" 
is employed, a word that in preserft-day English is 
always neuter. At the time the Bible was translated, 
however, the form "which" was used of persons as 
well as things, for example: "Our Father which art 
in heaven" (Matt 6:9) and "these . . . which 
have received the Holy Ghost." (Acts 10:47.) As a 
matter of fact it would not have been surprising if 
the neuter form had crept into the translation of some 
other passages, as the Greek word for spirit (pneuma) 
is neuter. This makes it all the more remarkable that 
throughout the Greek New Testament the pronouns 
referring to this neuter word are masculine. The fact 
of the Greek noun itself being neuter has no bearing 
whatever on the question of personality or sex, as is 
well understood by any one familiar, for instance, with 
German, in which the same thing is often true. 

353, Will the Jews Ever Return to Palestine? 

Will the Jews return to the Holy Land, and will 
they ever, as a nation, acknowledge Christ as the Mes- 
siah? is often asked, and again it is sought to be 
known how they can be God's chosen people when 
they reject Christ. There is no doubt that the Jews 
were God's chosen people and Paul says (Romans 
11 :i) that He has not cast them off. In that and the 
two preceding chapters the apostle fully discusses the 
question. The prophets assure us that they will re- 
turn to the Holy Land. There are predictions, dating 
before and during the captivity in Babylon, which 
were fulfilled when they returned under the edict of 
Cyrus, but there are others indicating a later and per- 
manent restoration. The passages in Isaiah 2:2-4, 



A Christian's Problems 354-355 

Jeremiah 3:18, 16:14, 15; Ezekiel 36:24, 37:21, 25, 
39:28, and many others have not yet been fulfilled. 
They will probably return in unbelief but will be con- 
verted later (see Rom. 11:26). 

354. Is Justification the Same Under the Old 

and New Dispensations? 

Justification is the act of God and has ever been so, 
under both the Old and New Dispensations. Under 
the Old, those were accepted who rendered a faithful 
and willing obedience ; thus we read, in Gal. 3 :6, that 
Abraham believed God, and this belief (i e., faith) was 
accounted to him .for righteousness. Under the New 
Dispensation, Jesus "came to bring life and immor- 
tality to light/' that is, to give us a spiritual illumina- 
tion which would disclose to man the great scheme of 
redemption ordained from the beginning. The con- 
tention, therefore, that none save those who are in the 
New Dispensation can attain immortality is untenable. 
Besides, the evidence of Scripture itself is against such 
a conclusion. Moses and Elijah were seen at the 
transfiguration. Paul held that while the race, as a 
whole, died in Adam's sin, as a whole it received life 
through Christ's redemptive work. 

355. How Can the Kingdom of God Be Estab- 

lished before the Judgment Day? 

The Kingdom of the Messiah, which was foretold 
by many of the prophets and is further explained in 
the New Testament, is a divine, spiritual kingdom, to 
be built up in the hearts of men and ultimately to be- 
come universal. It is described in the early prophecies 
as a coming golden age, when the true religion should 



356 



Difficult Bible Questions 



be re-established and universal peace and happiness 
should prevail. Unquestionably, it was regarded by 
the Jews in a temporal sense only, but the Saviour 
himself declared it to be a spiritual kingdom, and his 
followers look forward to its highest realization only 
after his return. Meanwhile, it is being established 
now; from the beginning of the Christian dispensa- 
tion, it has progressed in the hearts of men. That 
Jesus himself intended to convey this is made clear 
in Matt. 8:12, 11:12, 11:28; Mark 12:34; Luke 11:9, 
11, and many other passages which deal with the va- 
rious phases of the same subject. Matt. 24 describes 
the condition of the believers at the judgment and 
their welcome to the fulness of the completely estab- 
lished kingdom, with all its blessings and rewards. 

356. Can a Christian Keep the Moral Law? 

To unfallen man, obedience to the moral law would 
undoubtedly have been within human reach, but to 
fallen man it stands as an unattainable ideal, to which 
he may strive, but in vain. There is none without sin 
(I John 1 :8), and as a perfect obedience to God's law 
implies entire sinlessness, it is obviously impossible 
that such obedience can be rendered by mortal man. 
But to those who are in Christ this difficulty is over- 
come. (Rom. 4:7.) They are not under the law and 
consequently are not to be judged by the law. (Rom. 
6:15; I John 3:9.) Christ, by his perfect obedience, 
and his sufferings for their sins, has satisfied the law 
in their behalf. (II Cor. 5:21.) Thus, when grace 
enters the heart, its sinfulness is removed. The right- 
eousness and perfect obedience of Christ being im- 
puted to his people, they are accepted of God. (Rom. 



A Christian's Problems 357-358 

3:24; II Cor. 12:9.) Christians, therefore, should not 
serve in the bondage of fear, as under the law (I Tim. 
1:9), but in love, as under grace in Christ Jesus. 
(Rom. 8:1-15.) 

357. Does the Bible Say Anything About Life 
Insurance ? 

There is nothing in Scripture bearing on the subject 
of life insurance, but there are various passages on 
thrift and on making provision for old age. If you 
turn to I Tim. 5 :8 you will find a very definite state- 
ment on the subject. Evidently Paul did not believe 
that any man claiming to be a Christian was justified 
in leaving his dependent ones to be a burden on the 
community, either during his life or afterward. There 
are birds and other animals that give improvident 
man a lesson by the way they lay up a store of food 
against the winter season. Jesus in Matt. 6:31-34 
was not rebuking thrift, but worldly-mindedness and 
vanity. He was referring to those who pursued the 
tilings of this life as the supreme object. He wanted 
his followers to "take no thought (anxious care or 
worry) for the morrow." He had no word of con- 
demnation for attention to business, but business gains, 
wealth, possessions, etc., are all of secondary impor- 
tance, and worry about them springs from the heart's 
distrust of God, and does no good, but rather evil. 

358* Is the Love of God towards Man to Be 
Interpreted Individually? 

This question has often disquieted Christians under 
affliction. It has often appeared to the godly man, 
as it did to Job, that the children of God fare no bet- 



359 



Difficult Bible Questions 



ter in the world than the wicked. But we are taught 
in a multitude of passages in the Bible, that God does 
know and care for the individual. Christ was very 
explicit on the subject. (See Matt. 10:29-31.) The 
promise in the New Testament to Christ's followers 
is not of prosperity, but that they shall receive strength 
to bear their afflictions and that those afflictions shall 
work for good to them. Our prayers would be simple 
mockeries if we did not believe in God's care for the 
individual. The Christian, like the worldling, is sub- 
ject to natural law and other things being equal, a blow 
that would kill a worldling would kill him. It is often 
difficult to understand why so many afflictions fall to 
the righteous which the wicked escape, but God does 
not explain these particular trials. He expects us to 
trust him and to be assured that "he does not willingly 
afflict nor grieve" us, and to patiently wait the revela- 
tion which will make all things clear. 

359. Does God Work Miracles at the Present 
Time? 

This is a question often asked. The arm of Omnip- 
otence is not shortened that it cannot save. Thou- 
sands have been restored in mind and body in answer 
to the prayer of faith. Yet he never works unneces- 
sary miracles. God has given us means and endowed 
us with intelligence to use these means, and he will 
not withhold his blessing upon their use when we ask 
it in faith. We ask him to feed us, but we must labor 
with our hands and not expect him to bless our idle- 
ness nor our lack of effort. So, if we ask him to heal 
us, we must use in faith the means he has supplied, 
with all the intelligence he has given us. It is simply 



A Christian's Problems 360-361 

"tempting God'' to neglect his means. Jesus himself 
applied the clay and the spittle to the eyes of the blind. 
Xaaman had to bathe in the Jordan. Even in the 
healing of the soul, which is an operation of the 
Holy Spirit, we must co-operate, and while he works 
in us, we ourselves must work with "fear and trem- 
bling.^ And if Divine wisdom should see fit to with- 
hold the boon we crave in the form we ask, we must 
submit in faith to his will, as he knows what is best for 
us. Strength is often made perfect in weakness and 
many things we mistakenly call evils are blessings in 
disguise. 

360. Did Paul Discourage Marriage? 

In the /th chapter of I Cor., Paul had apparently 
been asked questions by the Church in Corinth which 
tended to disparage marriage and to regard it as an 
undesirable state when one of the parties is an unbe- 
liever. His long reply may be summed up in a few 
words : "Abide in your present station, for the time 
is short." He believed that, by remaining single, he 
could devote himself more acceptably to his Gospel 
work. The passage in I Tim. 5:14 is not inconsistent 
with the other, for the circumstances of the two cases 
were different, and in the latter he commends mar- 
riage under certain conditions, as an antidote to certain 
temptations. 

361. What Has the Bible to Say About Mar- 

riage and Divorce? 

The Bible law on marriage and divorce may be 
learned from the following passages : Gen. 3 '.24 ; Matt. 
19:5; by Peter in Mark 10:7, 8; Eph. 5:31; Matt. 



362 



Difficult Bible Questions 



19:6; Mark 10:8: Mark 10:9; Mai. 2:16; Matt. 5:32, 
19:9; I Cor. 7:11; Matt. 19:9; Luke 16:18; Mark 
10:11; Luke 16:18; Matt. 5:32; I Cor. 7:11; Rom. 
7 :2 ; I Cor. 7 .-39 ; Rom. 7 :$ . ; I Cor. 7 39. 

362. Does God Approve of the Marriage of an 
Unbeliever to a Believer? 

The whole question at issue is fully and fearlessly 
discussed in II Cor. 6:14-18. This is Paul's interpre- 
tation and it stands good today as a general rule of 
Christian conduct. Nevertheless, we are not to judge 
those who may ignore the injunction, for in I Cor. 
7:14, the apostle shows how such a union may after 
all accomplish beneficent results. From this verse to 
chapter 7:1, inclusive, the apostle seems to forbid too 
much social intercourse generally with idolatrous and 
heathenish people, rather than to have in view the mar- 
riage relation especially. In I Cor. 7:12-16, separation 
from the unbelieving husband or wife is discounte- 
nanced, because the believing spouse may be able to 
sanctify — that is, make holy — the unregenerate mate, 
and may effect conversion to salvation. In the same 
chapter and other passages of the apostolic writings 
marriage is encouraged without any restrictions. In 
Gal. 5:1, and Acts 15:10, the word "yoke" is used in 
a somewhat similar connection to that supposed to 
contain the implied prohibition. In Phil. 4:3, Paul 
addresses some unknown individual as "yoke-fellow," 
and it is quite certain he does not mean his wife. But 
if it is admitted that the text cited prohibits intermar- 
riage between Christians and unbelievers, it must be 
construed with reference to the conditions of sensual 
idolatry universally prevailing at that period in the 



A Christian's Problems 363-364 

city of Corinth. Paul was addressing a small com- 
munity of Christians in a very large heathen city, and 
it is as if we should advise Christians in China and 
India not to intermarry with Buddhists and Moham- 
medans, only more aggravated. 

363. Is It Possible that the Miracle of the Incar- 

nation May Be Repeated? 

The word "possible" is inappropriate in such con- 
nection, because nothing is impossible with God; but 
when we hear of his doing something utterly inconsis- 
tent with his ways, we know 7 that it cannot be true, 
because he would never contradict himself. All the 
teaching of the Bible, the Epistle to the Hebrews 
especially, leads to the conclusion that Christ is the 
one and final incarnation of God. There is no need of 
another, because he fully satisfied the Divine purpose 
and has been found to fully satisfy the need of man. 
Many have arisen since his time, as he warned us 
there would, who have claimed to be God in human 
form, like some who even in recent years have made 
such a claim ; but they were and are impostors. They 
are deceiving many, as Christ said impostors would 
(see Matt. 24:24), but not those who look to Christ for 
light and guidance. 

364. What Is the "Call" to the Ministry? 

One of the best evidences of a genuine call is the 
possession of those special qualifications which add 
in marked degree to the usefulness of the Christian. 
If, under his addresses in Sunday School, or at prayer- 
meetings, or at mission churches God has acknowl- 
edged his work and souls are led to Christ, there is 



365 Difficult Bible Questions 

strong reason to believe that it may be his duty to de- 
vote all his time to preaching and pastoral work. A 
man's own intense desire to preach and the concurrent 
opinion of experienced Christians that his work would 
be useful in the pulpit, are also indications. The basis 
of all qualifications for the ministry, however, is that 
there must be in the heart an intense love of souls, 
consecration to Gospel service, and a sense of personal 
acceptance, pardon and regeneration through Christ. 
None but one who has himself traveled the road that 
leads to the Cross can guide others along the same 
path. See Col. 1 128; Matt. 15:14; Luke 6:39. 

365. What Are the Qualifications of a Minister? 

A true minister of the Gospel must possess, above 
everything else, an intense love for Christ and a great 
love for his fellowmen. These two qualifications will 
necessarily give him an intense passion to save souls, 
and this is the true secret of success. He must love 
Christ so much and love people so much that he will 
long to proclaim Christ's message to men and win 
them to him. He must understand the Gospel — must 
feel its operation in his own heart and must know that 
"it is the power of God unto salvation, to every one 
that believeth." He must understand that the Gospel 
is the message of God's free grace to men by which 
he forgives and sanctifies them, and he must know how 
to lead men, not to try to save themselves by efforts 
and vows, but to accept humbly God's infinite gift of 
a present salvation. A minister should have common 
sense and a well-balanced mind. He should have a 
clear voice and the ability to express himself clearly 
and forcibly in speech ; if eloquently, so much the bet- 



A Christian's Problems 366 

ter. He should have modesty and tact, and these even 
without much social experience, will lead him to con- 
duct himself correctly and winsomely. His studies 
should lead him to know more of Christ, to know more 
of the Gospel, to know more of men, and to acquire 
more skill in delivering the message. He must study 
voice culture, rhetoric and some elocution — though 
this last is dangerous, as it is apt to make a speaker 
affected, which is fatal to real success. He must study 
the Bible and should study theology, and psychology. 
Special emphasis must be laid upon understanding peo- 
ple. A technical theological education sometimes lifts 
a man away from the people he must help instead of 
putting him into closer touch with them. He must un- 
derstand how people live and work and suffer and 
think and must be sympathetic with and well informed 
about the movements they are making toward greater 
liberties and better social conditions. This understand- 
ing of people, individually and in groups, will help him 
to convince them of their need of Christ for their souls 
and for society. He should, if possible, also have some 
knowledge of business affairs so that in the conduct of 
his church he will not fall into financial and legal snares. 

366. How Long Have We Had a Trained Min- 
istry? 

The Bible informs us that even in the days of Sam- 
uel there were "schools of the prophets/' in which men 
w r ere trained for the high function of moral and spir- 
itual teaching. The priests and Levites were trained 
in the knowledge of the ecclesiastical law and the cer- 
emonies. In later Jewish history, twelve great institu- 
tions for educating priests, teachers and elders existed. 

16 



367 Difficult Bible Questions 

Jesus himself passed a consideraoie portion of his min- 
istry in instructing and training his disciples. We read 
in Acts that the apostles imitated his example in per- 
sonally instructing the younger disciples. John spent 
his later years teaching at Ephesus, qualifying youths 
for the ministry, and Mark did likewise at Alexan- 
dria. Early Christian training schools were established 
in Cesarea, Antioch, Laodicea, Nicomedia, Athens, 
Edessa, Seleucia, Carthage and in Mesopotamia and 
there were many minor institutions of the same 
class. Thus all the evidence goes to show that even 
from the earliest days, those who were designed to 
convey God's message to the hearts of men were set 
apart, consecrated, and fitly prepared. It is so today. 
A trained and educated ministry is essential to the ad- 
vancement of religion just as training and prepara- 
tion are needed in other vocations. The apostles, even 
if they had nothing more, had a course of several 
years' personal training with the great Master as 
their teacher before they were sent out on their full 
mission. It is true that many converted laymen, and 
women, too, have done and are doing noble work in 
soul saving, but they are exceptional and the fact that 
their labors are owned and blessed of God is not a valid 
argument against a trained ministry, but rather the 
reverse. With due training they might have accom- 
plished even more. 

367. Is Misfortune a "Judgment of God"? 

We have no right to sit in judgment on others, and 
when some people censoriously announce that a mis- 
fortune which befalls a person or a community is "a 
judgment" of God, they assume undue authority. 



A Christian's Problems 368-369 

We are distinctly warned against judging others. See 
Christ's teaching on this subject. Luke 13:4. 

368. Has a Man Two Natures? 

In Rom. 7 125 Paul says : "So then with the mind 
I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the 
law of sin." The argument of the preceding verses 
has been the hopelessness of the struggle which that 
man must fight who strives to obtain salvation through 
the law. He is defeated by his own body, or the 
flesh, as Paul calls it. It drags him down and forces 
him to obey and to yield to its cravings ; so that in his 
despair he tries, "What I would I do not; but what 
I hate that do I." The picture is one that appeals to 
every unconverted man's experience. His reason, his 
pride, his manliness direct him to renounce some sin, 
such as drunkenness or lust. He resolves, but sud- 
denly the craving arises, and in spite of the resolves of 
his mind — his real ego — he is swept off his feet, and 
yields to his passion. The revelation of Christ as a 
helper crosses Paul's mind, and he thanks God. In 
the eighth chapter he is going to explain this at length, 
but he halts here at verse 25, to mark the stage reached 
by the man he is describing. "With the mind, I my- 
self," the real ego am serving God ; w r hile with the 
flesh, the animal nature, I am serving sin. In Romans 
8:10 this problem is solved. Through Christ the 
spirit is strengthened, and the flesh is controlled and 
subdued. He is freed by the spirit of life (Romans 
8:3). 

369, Will the Negroes Be Saved? 

The ablest scientists hold to the unity of the race, 
and in this they are in accord with Scripture, which 



370 Difficult Bible Questions 

declares that the Creator "hath made of one blood all 
nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the 
earth" (Acts 17:26), and that the "free gift comes 
upon all men to justification to life." Climatic varia- 
tions extending over long periods account for physical 
differences. The negro is the descendant of Ham, 
the head of one of the three great divisions of the 
human race. He was the progenitor of the Egyptians, 
the Cushites and the African nations, and his de- 
scendants were the founders of great empires in Ethio- 
pia, Babylonia, Arabia, Abyssinia and, according to 
some authorities, in a considerable part of Asia, as far 
as the Euphrates and the Persian Gulf. No one has 
the slightest warrant for asserting that the negro has 
not a soul. Christian converts from Cyrene in Upper 
Libya were among those who were identified with the 
formation of the first Gentile church in Antioch. Mark 
the evangelist labored during a large part of his mis- 
sionary career in Africa. Simon, who bore our Sav- 
iour's cross (Matt. 27:32), was a Cyrenian and a 
native of Libya. The Copts, who were active in the 
early days of Christianity, were a mixed race, chiefly 
negro. The Coptic Christian Church is one of the 
oldest in existence and possesses some of the most 
valuable early Christian manuscripts. 

370. Do the Pauline Epistles Contain All that 
Is Essential to Salvation? 

It is quite proper to lay special emphasis upon the 
writings of Paul, because he was especially chosen of 
God to interpret the life and death of the Saviour to 
the hearts and minds of men, particularly of those who 
were not Jews. Furthermore, Paul was authorized 



A Christian's Problems 370 

to shew that the requirements of the ceremonial law, 
as recorded by Moses, were done away with by the 
sacrifice of Christ. In this way it is easy to see that 
the explanation of the salvation wrought by the atone- 
ment is of more spiritual value than the precepts of 
the old law of sacrifices and ceremonies, which are no 
longer in force. The tremendous value of Paul's 
writings lies in the fact that he shows men the practi- 
cal, immediate way of receiving salvation, not by the 
keeping of commandments, but by faith in the cruci- 
fied Saviour. Granting all this, however, it is great 
folly to say that the other parts of the Bible are unim- 
portant. The Pentateuch is full of flashes of God's 
presence and God's will, containing holy principles 
which are eternal, and recording the experiences of 
men who knew God; the historical books show God 
working in the life of a nation ; the poetical and wis- 
dom books give us inspiration and instruction for daily 
living; the prophetic books give us glimpses of the 
coming Saviour and are pulsating with direct, personal 
messages from God to the human soul; the Gospels 
help us to get acquainted with the Redeemer and to 
understand the kind of life he wants us to live and his 
hope for the world ; the Acts give us clear pictures of 
men who were impelled by the power of the Holy 
Ghost and challenge us to let the risen Christ work 
through us as he worked through them; the other 
epistles are full of spiritual help, and the book of 
Revelation gives us visions of the life to come. All 
are important; all help us to know Christ better; 
all lead us to God. We must not slight these other 
books, even while agreeing that Paul is the direct 



371-372 Difficult Bible Questions 

messenger to us Gentiles to show us the way of salva- 
tion by faith. 

371. Why Was Polygamy Allowed to the Pa- 
triarchs and Why Is It Wrong Now? 

Jesus, in speaking of certain provisions of the 
Mosaic law on the marriage question, said: "From 
the beginning it was not so." Matt. 19:8. He referred 
to the original creation of one man and one woman 
as fixing the moral law that a man should have but 
one wife. The fact that Abraham and the other pa- 
triarchs had more than one wife does not make polyg- 
amy right any more than the fact that they owned 
slaves makes slavery right. The Bible is a truthful 
record of the lives of the people of whom it tells. They 
did many things that were wrong; God dealt gently 
and patiently with his people, leading them by a long 
process of teaching and development toward the full 
understanding of his perfect will. There was no par- 
ticular time at which polygamy became wrong, but it 
was the teaching of Jesus, more than any other influ- 
ence, that showed mankind that it is wrong. In the 
New Testament the love of husband and wife is pre- 
sented as the highest form of love ; it is inconceivable 
that any outsider, or third person, can enter into this 
sacred fellowship. Polygamy means injustice to wom- 
en ; the plural wives are outsiders, deprived, from the 
Christian point of view, of real wifehood 

372« Does God Answer Prayers? 

Most assuredly he does, but his ways are not as our 
ways. We are at best but children in spiritual things. 
Yet there is nothing in this world so clear and so 



A Christian's Problems 373 

well attested by Christian evidence, as that if we pray 
with believing hearts and in the right spirit, he will 
hear us and do what is best for us. No such prayer 
goes unanswered. The answer may not be as we ex- 
pected, nevertheless it will be for the best and to the 
purpose. Says Professor Denney : "When we pray in 
Jesus' name there is nothing which we may not ask. 
Whatever limitations there may be, they are covered 
by the name of Jesus itself. We must not ask what is 
outside of that name, not included in its promise. We 
must not ask a life exempt from labor, from self-denial, 
from misunderstanding, from the Cross ; how could 
we ask such things in His Name? But ignoring this 
self-evident restriction, Jesus expressly, emphatically 
and repeatedly removes every other limit. There is 
nothing which the name of Jesus puts into our hearts 
which we may not, with all assurance, put into our 
prayers. " In his name, we can ask with assurance for 
pardon from God; we can ask to be strengthened in 
temptation and to be kept from falling, and restored 
when through human weakness we do fall, for we 
have the assurance that he will not let us be utterly 
cast down ; we can ask for the sanctifying work of 
the Holy Spirit in our lives. We can ask that our 
material wants as well as our spiritual needs may be 
fully supplied. But, in asking, we must have the faith 
to lay hold, and when we pray with this faith, we 
shall never pray amiss. 

373. Do Prayers for the Unconverted Help? 

The most definite Bible passage on this subject is 
I John 5:16: "If any man see his brother sin a sin 
which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give 



374 Difficult Bible Questions 

him life." The words of Paul in Acts 16:31, "Thou 
shalt be saved, and thy house," probably mean simply 
that if all the members of the household believed they 
would be saved. But we have positive Scripture war- 
rant for praying for our unconverted friends, and 
countless incidents from present day life and earlier 
times prove that many hearts have been won to Christ 
through prayer. The assurance may not always come 
that those for whom we pray will yield to God, but 
sometimes the assurance does come very definitely. 
Prayer for others should be personal, definite, earnest. 
S. D. Gordon in his Quiet Talks on Prayer takes the 
position that prayer for others, offered in the name 
of Jesus, has the effect of driving off evil influences 
from the persons for whom the prayer is being made. 
It projects the personal influence of the one who is 
praying to the one prayed for, and clears the spiritual 
atmosphere so that the voice of God can be heard and 
the power of God felt. Just as by talking to a person 
one may be able to persuade him to listen and yield 
to God, so by prayer one may influence another to 
submit himself to God. Most important of all is love. 
We must love ardently, steadily, those for whom we 
pray. Love will prevent us from doing things that 
would mar our influence over them or spoil their con- 
ception of the religious life. If our friends know that 
we love them deeply and constantly our words and 
prayers will have an almost irresistible power. 

374. Should We Pray for One from Whom the 
Holy Ghost Has Departed? 

Who are you, to assume to judge that such a one 
has been forsaken by the Holy Spirit? It would be 



A Christian's Problems 375 

a fearful responsibility to act on such a conclusion. 
Of one thing you may rest assured: if the person is 
at all concerned about his spiritual condition, no mat- 
ter how deeply he has offended, that very fact is con- 
clusive evidence that the Holy Spirit has not aban- 
doned him, but is still striving with him. When the 
Holy Spirit leaves a man, that man becomes careless 
and indifferent and has no desire to pray. It is diffi- 
cult — almost impossible — for us to understand the 
operations of the Spirit, but you may be assured that 
the love and compassion and long-suffering of God 
are infinite. Christ said that he would cast out none 
who came to him. With such an assurance, no man 
need wait to try to solve the mysteries of the Holy 
Spirit's work. The practical duty of closing with 
Christ's offer of salvation is the first thing for him to 

do. 

375. Should We Persistently Ask for Blessings? 

By all means. The three passages, Matt. 11:12; 
Luke 11 15-10 (the parable of the friend at night seek- 
ing loaves from his neighbor), and Luke 18:1-8 (the 
parable of the unjust judge), all relate to the subject 
of earnestness and perseverance in prayer. The argu- 
ment is that if the unfriendly neighbor and the unjust 
judge will grant the requests made to them because of 
the petitioner's insistance, God will surely grant our re- 
quests when he sees that we are in desperate earnest- 
ness. Matt. 11:12, "the kingdom of heaven suffereth 
violence, and the violent take it by force," agrees with 
these two parables in teaching that intensity, of desire 
and faith and effort, is required for spiritual victory. 
Faith seems to have two phases : the quiet, restful trust 



376 Difficult Bible Questions 

in God; and the aggressive, enthusiastic, energetic, 
insistent belief that pushes forward through all sorts 
of obstacles and delays to the victory desired. It is 
not because God is unjust or unfriendly that he does 
not answer at once. But our souls are strengthened by 
the test of waiting, and often human relationships and 
circumstances are changed as time passes so that the 
answer is better for the delay than if granted at the 
first request. God wants to train giants to help him in 
his work, giants who will believe in him and fight for 
the right, no matter what obstacles are in the way. 
And the saints who are strong and rich in faith ac- 
complish most for his kingdom. 

376. Is It Right to Ask for Definite Blessings? 

There are many passages, such as John 16 123, which 
warrant definiteness in prayer. Indeed, if a man needs 
something very badly, and is sure that it would be a 
blessing to him, he would show a lack of faith if he 
did not pray for it. There are many, however, who 
shrink from praying for definite blessings, after a 
painful experience. They have prayed for some bless- 
ing, and God has heard them, and granted their re- 
quest, and it has proved to be a curse. Emerson said, 
in a passage which we cannot find, but the gist of 
which we quote from memory, that all prayers are 
answered, therefore we ought to be very careful for 
what we pray. A celebrated divine wrote : "There 
are millions of Christians day by day imploring God 
for the salvation of the whole world, and the suppli- 
cation has never been answered. Does God, then, 
keep his promise? Is prayer a dead failure? Does 
God mock the Christian Church? Are we told to 



A Christian's Problems 377-378 

bring all our gifts into the storehouse and prove him, 
only to find out that he breaks his promise? The 
answer to prayer is only a question of time. So far 
from there ever having been a million prayers lost, 
there has never been one prayer lost. God not only 
keeps one promise, but he keeps all the promises, and 
never since the moment we first breathed the Chris- 
tian life, have we ever offered an unavailing prayer." 

377. Why Should We Agree with Our Ad- 

versary Quickly? 

The passage is a part of the Sermon on the Mount 
in Matt., 5th chapter. Jesus had been speaking about 
quarrels between brothers, and urging reconciliation 
of such differences in the spirit of love, before coming 
to the throne of grace. Then (verse 25) he diverges 
to the question of lawsuits, which were common then 
as now, and advises his hearers to keep out of the 
hands of the law and to escape its penalties by settling 
their disputes between themselves. But he went fur- 
ther than this, for his language pointed to a higher 
tribunal, to which all must come for judgment and 
where condemnation awaits them which can only be 
escaped by their repentance and acceptance of divine 
mercy. 

378, Will God Give Us Anything We Ask? 

In John 14:14 (which should be read in connection 
with its surroundings), Jesus was speaking (in the 
discourse at table after the Supper) of the way, the 
truth, and the life, and of how his disciples might ren- 
der acceptable service for the advancement of God's 
kingdom on earth. He was about to leave them and he 



379 Difficult Bible Questions 

gave them the assurance that they would be endowed 
with power, after his departure, to do the works that 
he had done. Verse 14 gave them the assurance of 
his continuous intercession and that their prayers 
would be heard and answered. He had already told 
them that they should seek first the kingdom and all 
things would be added unto them. This verse also 
shows his divine equality, in the words "I will do it." 
Our own prayers should be, as far as we are able to 
make them so, in line with God's will. There are 
many of us who may ask for things that would be for 
our own harm ; but if we "seek first the kingdom," we 
have then the assurance that he will care for all our 
other needs, supply our wants, comfort our sorrows, 
relieve our hardships and take us safely through the 
difficult places of life. We have a right to ask for 
these, if we have acquired this right by belief on the 
Son of God and by acting in accordance with the 
divine will. See John 14:12. 

379. Does God Regard Our "Little Things" in 
Prayer? 

Christ assumes toward all his followers the attitude 
of a friend. He said to his disciples : "Henceforth I 
call you not servants, but I have called you friends." 
We "work together" with him as friend with friend; 
our interests are identical with his and his with ours. 
On this basis it is perfectly rational to believe that he 
will give us all the help we need in the work we are 
trying to do for him. Christ certainly knows all about 
all the "little things" that come into our lives ; also he 
will allow nothing to happen which will spoil or se- 
riously hinder our work. Paul believed that Satan was 



A Christian's Problems 380 

trying to hamper him; in one place he says definitely 
that Satan hindered him, really prevented him from 
getting where he wanted to go (I Thess. 2:18). The 
right attitude is to ask God to further our tasks and 
then heroically and patiently keep at them. We must 
remember, too, that a certain amount of hardship and 
suffering is really necessary to develop the most stal- 
wart Christian character. (See Heb. 12:1-11 ; II Tim. 
2:3; Heb. 11, etc.) The Christian must beware of 
praying selfishly. A brave soldier would hardly pray 
for fair weather, except as it would aid the battle. We 
may certainly pray for strength; and the joy will come 
as we forget self in loving and serving the Master. 
But we should not forget that when God in his wis- 
dom gave us eyes to see, a tongue to speak, a brain 
to think and reason to discriminate and guide us in 
our judgment, he meant these faculties to be of serv- 
ice. He gives us the fertile soil, but we must do 
the plowing and the planting. Faith in God does not 
imply that we should look to him to do for us what he 
has made us capable of doing for ourselves. When we 
do our part, then we can reach out the hand of faith 
and grasp his leading hand, which will carry us 
through in all we cannot do for ourselves. 

380. Does God Hear the Prayer of the Wicked ? 

We have precedent for such a belief. A striking 
example is that of Manasseh (II Chron. 33:18). A 
greater sinner than he it would be difficult to imagine. 
We can understand prayers of sinners for temporal 
blessings being unheard ; "their sacrifice" and perhaps 
their prayers, too, "are an abomination" (Prov. 15 :8) ; 
but when the sinner cries to God for pardon and for 



381-382 Difficult Bible Questions 

help to quit his sins, he is surely heard. God does 
not mock the wicked man when he bids him "seek the 
Lord." Let the wicked forsake his way and return, 
for he will abundantly pardon (Isa. 55:6, 7). God 
heard the prayers of the people of Nineveh (Jonah 
3:7-10). The way of approach to God is by repen- 
tance and that God gives (Acts 5:31). When the 
wicked man prays for that, he gets it; then God for- 
gives him and he is in a position to ask for and receive 
all other blessings. 

381. Was the Prohibition against Eating Pork 

Ever Revoked? 

At what is known as the "first church council/' 
described in Acts 15, the decision was definitely made 
that Gentile Christians were not to be compelled to 
keep the Jewish ceremonial law. The council sent a 
letter to the new converts setting them free from all 
these ceremonial requirements. This was the great 
burden of Paul's preaching, namely, that we are saved 
not by keeping the law of Moses but by faith in Christ. 
Circumcision was the sign of submission to the Mosaic 
law, and Paul, greatly to the displeasure of the Jews, 
taught that this was not necessary. The vision of 
Peter (Acts 10:9-16) while given for the purpose of 
making him willing to associate intimately with Gen- 
tiles, seems also to teach definitely that the Old Testa- 
ment distinction between clean and unclean meats is 
no longer in force. 

382. When and Why Was the Sabbath Changed 

to the First Day of the Week? 

There is no command recorded, and probably none 
was given to change, but the change was made in 



A Christian's Problems 383 

celebration of Christ's rising from the dead. At the 
first great council of the Church, when the question 
was discussed whether the Gentile converts should be 
required to obey the Jewish law, it was decided that 
only four observances should be required of them. 
(See Acts 15.) The observance of the Jewish Sab- 
bath was not one of the four, and the Gentile Christians 
do not appear to have ever kept it. The Rabbis had 
made it ridiculous by a host of absurd regulations 
about what a man might, or might not, do on that day. 
Christ was frequently accused of breaking the Sab- 
bath. The Jewish observance was most vexatious and 
onerous, and the Apostles very wisely did not attempt 
to bring the Gentiles under the bondage. The writings 
of the early Fathers show that very early in the Chris- 
tian era, if not in Apostolic times, the first day of the 
week was uniformly the day of religious meeting and 
abstinence from secular labor, thus celebrating the 
new Creation as the Jewish Sabbath celebrated the old; 
Several incidental allusions in the Acts show that even 
in Apostolic times, the custom was prevalent. But we 
do not observe Sunday as the Sabbath. It is seldom 
a day of rest to the earnest Christian, but of holy 
activity in his Master's service. 

383. Is Suicide Wrong? 

Life is a precious gift from God and should be so 
valued. Pain and suffering are to be regarded as dis- 
cipline. There is no Scriptural authority to justify the 
view that we have a right to shorten or terminate our 
existence. Suicide is a crime under human law, and in 
the early Church it was condemned by repudiation and 



384-385 Difficult Bible Questions 

the denial of Christian burial. See Paul's advice to the 
Philippian jailer. (Acts 16:28; also Job 14:14.) 

384. Is Being Tempted a Sin? 

The sin does not consist in the temptation itself, 
but in inviting it, or yielding to it. Jesus himself was 
tempted "in all things as we are; yet without sin." 
Doubtless Satan, in the passage to which you refer, 
knew that Jesus had been fasting and so tried to 
tempt him to turn stones into bread. Again, believing 
that the desire for worldly power might influence him, 
he tried to tempt him by offering him the dominion 
of the whole earth, but again failed. It is not strictly 
correct to say that one cannot be tempted unless he has 
wrong desires. The tempter is always ready with his 
lures ; but, if we rebuke our own desires and repel the 
temptation, asking divine strength to do this, the 
danger will pass. After conversion comes regenera- 
tion, and we are enabled to overcome sin. We may 
still be conscious of a struggle within, but we get 
strength to stand firm against it. The truly converted 
man is no longer the slave or bondman of sin, but is 
kept day by day from its power ever again having 
dominion over him. 

385. What Is the Trinity; How Is It Possible; 

and What Proof Is There of It? 

Are questions that have bothered thousands of 
earnest believers. No one should feel discouraged if 
the doctrine of the Trinity seems difficult, because as 
must be remembered, the facts about God are so much 
bigger than the brain of man that we cannot be ex- 
pected in our present human state to comprehend 



A Christian's Problems 386 

them. The orthodox faith is that God is Triune 
in person. Christians feel by experience that God is 
their Father, that Christ is their divine Saviour, that 
the Holy Spirit is their Comforter, Sanctifier and 
Strengthened The Father is a person; the Son is a 
person; the Holy Spirit is a person; three distinct 
persons in one eternal undivided and indivisible essence. 
How this is possible is not beyond comprehension to 
him that has learned to believe and know that to God 
all is possible and all doubts may be banished by the 
beautiful thought that to all others there is here one 
more glorious mystery into the depths and wherefores 
of which we are to be introduced in the happy beyond. 
And the proof! What more convincing proof can be 
asked than the words of him whom no one doubts, 
the Son of God and of Man. He tells us "I and my Fa- 
ther are one," "He that seeth me seeth him that sent 
me." In his farewell address to his disciples he speaks of 
the Comforter which is the Holy Ghost whom the Father 
will send in my name. At his baptism, the Father's 
voice is heard from heaven and the Holy Spirit de- 
scends in the form of a dove and lights upon him. Yes, 
at the very beginning of things God speaks of himself 
in the plural, "Let us make man after our image," while 
all the while "the Spirit of God moved upon the face 
of the waters." Truly proof sufficient for all who 
would believe. 

386. Is Trouble Sent As a Punishment? 

The Bible does not teach that all trouble comes from 
God as a punishment. It recognizes the fact that 
trouble is in the world, and, while it has some very 
definite things to say about it it does not attempt to 

17 



387 Difficult Bible Questions 

give a complete solution of the whole problem. He- 
brews 12:5-11 declares that God does in some in- 
stances, discipline or "chasten," those whom he loves, 
but this could hardly be called punishment. (See also 
Deu. 8:5; Ps. 94:12; John 15:2.) Sometimes, how- 
ever, calamity is a definite punishment, as in many 
cases during the history of Israel^ and particularly in 
their exile. The book of Job is a beautiful explanation 
of a form of suffering which has the double purpose of 
disciplining the soul and glorifying God. Nothing 
can bring such credit to God as the demonstration 
made by a soul that trusts and praises him in the 
midst of misfortune. Paul and the other apostles glori- 
fied in their opportunities to suffer for Jesus' sake. 
They rejoiced "that they were counted worthy to suffer 
shame in his name" (Acts 5:41). They felt that he 
had borne so much for them that they wanted to bear 
something for him. The Bible nowhere encourages 
people to dodge suffering; it exhorts them to bear it, 
while at the same time it exhorts them to lessen the 
sufferings of others, and help them bear their woes. 
See James 1 12-5 ; I Pet. 4:12-19; Gal. 6:2. 

387. Why Does Not God Save All the Human 
Race? 

It is contrary to the Divine method of dealing with 
the human race, as we understand it, for him to use 
compulsion with men. Apparently, his desire is to 
have a people who, being left free to choose, volunta- 
rily choose righteousness. He draws them, he yearns 
over them, applies discipline, offers them his help, but 
beyond this he will not go in this life. A man who is 
good only because he is compelled to be good, is of a 






A Christian's Problems 388 

much lower type than he who, being free to become 
evil, seeks of his own accord to become good. It is 
this higher type that, as we believe, God is trying to 
produce. 

388. Can an Honest, Moral, Upright Life Save 
Any One? 

People are constantly being misled in this matter 
because they fail to understand what salvation really 
is. Salvation is personal friendship and companion- 
ship with God. It is hard to see how a man who is not 
a friend of God at death will become one immediately 
after death. Being honest and upright does not really 
get us acquainted with God. Paul was intensely moral 
before his conversion, but he found out later that he 
had been an enemy of God all the time. Then, too, 
salvation means humility and meekness. The man who 
believes he can save himself puts himself out of the 
kingdom of heaven by that very attitude of mind. For 
the kingdom of heaven is made up of people with child- 
like hearts, who have given up their pride and self-will. 
Nor will the mere naming of the name of Christ and 
making a public confession make the necessary change. 
Jesus said very distinctly: "Ye must be born again." 
It is extremely unwise and unsafe to quarrel or argue 
with Jesus. He knows all about the human heart and 
all about the kingdom of heaven. The only thing to do 
is to accept his plan of salvation and let him give us 
the new heart, the heart that is humble and obedient, 
that is not self-confident but trustful, the heart that 
loves God and so will feel at home in God's heaven. 

Scripture and experience alike teach that it is possi- 
ble for one to have all the outward marks of religion, 



389 ' Difficult Bible Questions 

yet fail of possessing the real and vital thing. Saul of 
Tarsus was a most zealous man, trying to do the will 
of God, but after his conversion he felt that his former 
life had been very sinful, because he had not submitted 
himself to the will of God and accepted Christ's right- 
eousness as his own. John Wesley's experience was 
similar, and countless others of this and earlier days. 
It must be remembered that it is not outward conduct 
that makes the real Christian; it is the inner life, the 
humility, the glad surrender to God's will, the warm 
love felt for God and for the souls for whom Christ 
died. It is not our good works that save us, but a 
simple, self-forgetful trust in Jesus. This faith brings 
the life and love which constitute religion. 

A simple trust in the death of Jesus as the remedy 
for our sin. A simple acceptance of Christ to be our 
righteousness and our salvation will bring the joy 
and power of a new life of real sonship of God 
and fellowship with Christ. See Rom. 10:1-4; Phil. 
3 :3-9. 

389. Is It Possible for One to Be Saved with- 
out Knowing It? 

Among the children of Christian homes or among 
conscientious heathen (see Rom. 2:14, 15; Acts 10:34, 
35), there may be cases in which a soul has salvation 
and is not definitely conscious of it. In the vast 
majority of cases, however, since the turning toward 
sin has been definite and voluntary, so the turning from 
sin and the receiving of forgiveness and a new nature 
are so definite as to be matters of plain knowledge. 
The New Testament clearly teaches that those who 
become converted may receive the witness of the Spirit, 



A Christian's Problems 390-391 

assuring them that they have been born again (see 
Rom. 8:16; I John 5 :io). Any one who wants to be 
a Christian or hopes he is a Christian may receive this 
assurance if he persists in trusting Christ. Our salva- 
tion depends, not upon our feeling, but upon the un- 
changeable fact of the atonement and upon the plain 
promises of God's Word. When we definitely trust 
we become conscious of certain definite changes in our 
experience. Fear of God changes to love of God; we 
love God's people and his work. If we continue faith- 
ful the witness of the Spirit will be added to these 
signs and we shall know that we are children of God. 

390. What Is Meant by Transfiguration? 

"Transfiguration'' signifies a change of form or 
appearance. The forms of Moses and Elijah, when 
they appeared on the Mount, were spiritualized. Luke 
9:31 speaks of the subject of their converse. Some 
commentators hold that both Moses and Elijah were 
honored with an anticipatory resurrection, which 
would seem to be borne out by the fact of their pres- 
ence at the transfiguration. 

391. What Is Transubstantiation? 

Transubstantiation (the term applied to the change 
of the substance of the bread and wine into the body 
and blood of Jesus Christ at the Sacrament) is a 
doctrine held by some, but not all, of the Christian 
churches. The Church of England and a large number 
of Protestant bodies hold that the bread and wine are 
sanctified symbols. Chrysostom wrote that after divine 
grace had sanctified the bread, "it is no longer called 
bread, but dignified with the name of the body of the 



392 Difficult Bible Questions 

Lord, although the nature of bread remains in it." 
Theodoret declared that the bread and wine remain 
still in their own nature, after consecration. Augus- 
tine taught that what they saw upon the altar was 
bread and the cup, as their own eyes could testify ; but 
that their faith required to be instructed that the bread 
is the body of Christ; and he added, "These things 
are therefore called sacraments, because in them one 
thing is seen and another is understood. That which 
is seen has a bodily appearance; that which is under- 
stood has a spiritual fruit." Isidore of Seville said: 
"These two things are visible, but being sanctified by 
the Holy Ghost, they become the sacrament of the 
Lord's body." Luther held the doctrine of the true 
presence of the body and blood of Christ, saying, "The 
bread is the body, the wine is the blood of the Lord/' 
according to a sacramental union, but not in the man- 
ner of transubstantiation, adhering literally to the lan- 
guage of the Scriptures. The Catholic Church has 
always held the doctrine of the real, corporeal pres- 
ence. With a few exceptions, the Protestants interpret 
the Saviour's language figuratively, and hold that 
Jesus intended to convey to men the lesson that unless 
they voluntarily appropriated to themselves his death 
and sacrifice, so that they become their very life and 
nourishment, they can have no spiritual and eternal 
life at all. 

392. Can a Wealthy Business Man Be a Practical 
Christian ? 

Jesus said it was a hard thing for a rich man to 
enter into the kingdom; but he also showed, in the 
parable of the talents and other parables, that riches, 



A Christian's Problems 393 

properly regarded, and not held as a personal posses- 
sion to be used for selfish and worldly purposes, but as 
a trust to be applied conscientiously, may be made a 
source of blessing. There are many men of large 
wealth who are useful members of society and who 
administer their means wisely and conscientiously. 
Besides, we are not to be the judges of the hearts of 
men. It has become a habit with many to condemn 
wealth and its possessors indiscriminately ; and it is 
true that there is much in the present conditions of 
society that is open to legitimate criticism, but .honest 
men of strict integrity can be found in every honorable 
line of business, and an active life is as much respected 
today as when Prov. 22 '.29 was written. A man who 
directs his efforts mainly to the acquisition of wealth, 
without regard to its responsibilities, incurs great spir- 
itual danger. For the use we make of our talents and 
opportunities we shall be held strictly accountable. 

393. Is Wealth an Evil or a Blessing? 

There are many passages in the Bible relative to 
riches and its opposite, poverty. Nowhere is poverty 
spoken of as a blessing, but rather as a trial and dis- 
cipline ; yet wealth is to be regarded either as a bless- 
ing or the reverse, according to circumstances. Riches 
that are gotten and not by right can never bring happi- 
ness or satisfaction, and therefore result in sorrow or 
disappointment (Jer. 17:11). Christ taught his fol- 
lowers not to lay up for themselves "treasures on 
earth." He repeatedly warned them against the allure- 
ments of wealth. He declared wealth to be a great 
barrier to many — a hindrance to their eternal welfare. 
He taught his followers to set their minds on things 



394 Difficult Bible Questions 

above, and to take no thought of amassing riches or 
goods. Usurers, brokers, exchangers, and mere 
money-getters — those who set their hearts on wealth 
and made gold their god — he specially denounced. Yet 
he never spoke, even by implication, a word against 
the reward of honest industry, but on the contrary 
commended it. Voluntary poverty was assumed by the 
earliest disciples and fathers in the Christian Church. 
There is no duty of this character specifically enjoined, 
and we are told to "seek first the kingdom" and all 
needful things will be added. "Neither riches nor 
poverty" is the ideal meant for a contented Christian 
life. This is finely set forth in the beautiful prayer in 
Proverbs 30:8, Agur, the supplicant, being, as is sup- 
posed, a symbolical name for Solomon. 

394. How Do I Know That I Am Saved? 

There are two kinds of "assurance," as taught by 
the creeds, and both of them are matters of ordinary, 
everyday experience by many Christians. There are 
certain clear statements in the Bible as to the kind 
of person a Christian is. He must bear certain signs 
and marks and do certain things. He must love God 
and his neighbor ; he must love the Church ; he must be 
earnest and patient and bear the various "fruits of 
the Spirit." Now, a person can tell whether he is doing 
those things, whether his soul has these marks or not. 
Added to this test, however, is the direct "witness of 
the Spirit," the Spirit himself "bearing witness with 
our spirit that we are the children of God" (Rom. 
8:16; II Cor. 1 :22; Eph. 1 113). This is the voice of 
God, assuring us that we are his. It is important to 
remember that we should not wait for assurance, but 



A Christian's Problems 395 

must persistently and with determination believe God's 
word. Any one who is in doubt whether he is a child 
of God or not should insist immediately upon beginning 
to trust him. We become Christians by believing that 
Christ really does forgive our sins and receive us, 
remembering that he said : "Him that cometh unto 
me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37). As we 
continue to trust him we shall find ourselves manifest- 
ing the fruits of the Spirit, and God will whisper to 
us that we are his. 

395. Why Is It Wrong to Harbor Angry Feel- 
ings? 

God forbids it (Ecc. 7 :g ; Matt. 5 :22 ; Rom. 12 119) ; 
it is a characteristic of fools and a work of the flesh 
(Gal. 5:20; Prov. 12:16; Prov. 14:29; Prov. 27:3; 
Ecc. 7:9). Anger is connected with pride, cruelty, 
clamorous and evil speaking, malice and blasphemy, 
strife and contention (Prov. 21:24; Gen. 49:7; Eph. 
4:31; Col. 3:8; Prov. 21:19; Prov. 29:22), and brings 
its own punishment (Job 5:2; Prov. 19:19). Scrip- 
ture teaches us that grievous words stir up anger, that 
it may be averted by wisdom and that meekness paci- 
fies (Judg. 12:4; Prov. 29:8, 15:1). We are enjoined 
to be slow to anger, to avoid those given to it, to be 
free from it in prayer and not to provoke children to 
it (Prov. 15:18, 16:32; Tit. 1:7; Jas. 1:19; I Tim. 
2:8; Eph. 6:4). 



396-397 



CHRISTIAN LIVING 



396. Can One Be Converted and Saved with- 

out Baptism? 

Christ commanded baptism, and we cannot under- 
stand any person who really desires to serve him 
neglecting to obey him in so simple a matter. Still, 
it lowers the reverence we have for God to believe that 
he would exclude any really repentant, believing per- 
son from heaven simply because he had not been bap- 
tized. The person might have been converted on his 
death-bed, or if he was among Baptists he might die 
between the time of his conversion and the time set 
for administering the rite. God is not unjust, and 
would not hold a man responsible in such circum- 
stances. Do you suppose the thief who repented on 
the Cross was baptized? Yet Jesus promised him an 
entrance into Paradise. Baptism generally followed 
conversion in the time of the Apostles, as it does now 
generally in heathen lands. 

397. Can a Person Become a Christian without 

the Baptism of the Holy Spirit? 

As the word is usually understood, the baptism of 
the Holy Spirit was to confer special gifts for Christ's 
service. We have no reason to suppose that any man 
becomes a Christian without the influence of the Holy 
Spirit. The question is profitless, inasmuch as God 
gives the Holy Spirit freely. It would be impossible 



Christian Living 398-399 

to state positively in what way the first impression 
comes in any individual case, but we may be sure that 
in some way the Holy Spirit's power has operated. 
This does not relieve any one from responsibility, 
because God is more willing to impart than men 
are to receive ; but he does not force his gifts 
upon men. 

398. What Is the Examination Necessary to Eat- 

ing and Drinking Worthily at Commun- 
ion? 

A personal self-examination of the heart. If a man 
is conscious of hatred toward any one, of malice, of 
sinful purposes, of sinful connections which he ought 
to sever, but has not severed, or of cherishing any 
feeling inconsistent with his relation to Christ, he 
should not partake of the communion. This does not 
imply that only perfect persons should do so. If a 
man is honestly and earnestly striving after holiness 
and doing all that lies in him to live consistently; 
and sincerely deplores every failure and means to 
strive to avoid them in the future; if he loves Christ 
and is trusting in him for salvation, he is right in par- 
taking of the communion although he may be con- 
scious of having fallen into sin. (I Cor. 2:26, 28.) 

399. Should All Believers Confess Christ? 

Yes. There are very many good Christian people 
who never realize the true joy that belongs to the 
followers of Jesus, because they do not live in the 
sunlight. Some are so exceedingly sensitive about 
personal religion that they shrink to talk of it, even to 
their intimate friends. Even though they believe, they 



400 Difficult Bible Questions 

yet stand "afar off"; they have not been sufficiently 
drawn by love for the Master, or jy zeal for his serv- 
ice, to come near enough to the Cross to feel the glow 
that stimulates the ardent believer. When once these 
timid souls can shake off their reticence and come 
boldly forward and confess Christ before the world, 
a transformation takes place. There is a very real 
blessing which follows the confession of our faith be- 
fore men. Jesus himself said "Every one who shall 
confess me before men, him will I also confess before 
my Father, which is in heaven." (Matt. 10:32.) The 
knowledge of such recognition, following our open 
acknowledgment of Jesus as a Saviour, gives courage 
to the Christian and, like a loyal soldier who sees the 
flag of his country waving above him and who salutes 
it, his whole being thrills with zeal for service for the 
Great Captain of Salvation. Thus, at every fitting 
opportunity the believer should run up the flag, and 
let the world see whom he is serving. 

400. Believing in Christ. What Does It Imply? 

Believing in Christ does not mean merely believing 
that he is the Son of God. "The devils believe and 
tremble" (James 2:19). It means true repentance, 
contrition and an earnest desire for forgiveness, which 
leads us to look to Christ as the only way by which 
such forgiveness may be attained. To believe in him 
means that we are not only to believe in his divine 
mission and in the efficacy of his atonement for our 
sins, but to follow in his footsteps and emulate his 
example in all things wherever possible and to pray 
for the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our daily lives. 
Forgiveness is granted to all those who repent and be- 



Christian Living 401-402 

lieve and ask in faith. True repentance leads not 
merely to conviction of sin and to sorrow for our past 
offenses, but to a complete change in our life, i. e., a 
turning away from sin to holiness and gradual growth 
in grace through living near to Christ. 

401. Should Believers Associate with Unbeliev- 

ers? 

See II Cor. 6:14; Heb. 3:12; Acts 14:2; II Peter 
2:1, 2; also Ch. 3:3, 17. It is not intended, however, 
that the believer should hold no communication with 
those who are still in the darkness of unbelief, other- 
wise he would not be fulfilling the divine command to 
spread the Gospel, and, "show forth Christ," at all 
seasons. He should, however, avoid all such associa- 
tions and relationships — business, social and other- 
wise — as would bring a discordant element into his 
own home or business life, and thus antagonize spirit- 
ual growth. To put such people on the level of home 
acquaintances and intimate friends, would be very 
likely to prove spiritually disastrous to some member 
of your household, 

402. Who Are the "Blessed" We So Often Read 

About in the Bible? 

They are whom God chooses and calls (Ps. 65:4; 
Is. 51:2; Rev. 19:9) ; they know Christ and his Gos- 
pel, believe and are not offended at Christ (Matt. 
16:16, 17; Ps. 89:15; Matt. 11:6; Luke 1:45). Their 
sins are forgiven and God imputes to them righteous- 
ness without works (Ps. 32:1, 2; Rom. 4:6-9). But 
at times they are chastened, and suffer for Christ, but 
they are not hurt thereby as they trust in God, fear 



403 Difficult Bible Questions 

him, yes have their strength in him (Job 5:17; Luke 
6:22; Ps. 2:12; Jer. 17:7; Ps. 112:1 ; Ps. 84:5). There- 
fore they delight in his commandments and keep them, 
they hunger and thirst after righteousness, frequent 
the house of the Lord waiting for him (Ps. 112:1; 
Rev. 22:14; Matt. 5:6; Ps. 65:4; Is. 30:18). When 
in contact with the world they avoid the wicked, en- 
dure temptation, watch against sin : are undefiled, pure 
in heart, just, righteous, faithful, poor in spirit, meek, 
merciful, bountiful and are peacemakers (Ps. 1:1; 
Jas. 1 :i2;Rev. 16:15; Ps. 119:1; Matt. 5:8; Ps. 106:3; 
Ps. 5:12; Prov. 28:20; Matt. 5:3; Matt. 5:31; Matt. 
5:5; Matt. 5:7; Luke 14:13, 14; Matt. 5:9). Watch- 
ing for the Lord, they die in him, have part in the first 
resurrection and shall eat bread in the kingdom of 
God (Luke 12:37; Rev. 14:13; Rev. 20:6; Luke 14:15; 
Rev. 19:9). 

403. What Is Christian Conduct? 

Believing, fearing, loving, following, obeying and 
rejoicing in God (Mar. 11:22; Ecc. 12 :i3 ; I Pet. 2 :iy ; 
Deu. 6:5; Eph. 5:1; Luke 1:6; Ps. 33:1). Believing 
in, loving, obeying, rejoicing in, and following the 
example of Christ (Jno. 6:29; Jno. 21 :i5 ; Jno. 14:21 ; 
Phil. 3:1; Phil. 4:4). Walking and living soberly, 
righteously and godly, honestly, worthy of the Lord 
God, in the Spirit, in newness of life, worthy of our 
vocation as children of light (Tit. 2 :i2 ; I Thess. 4:12 ; 
I Thess. 2:12; Col. 1:10; Gal. 5:25; Rom. 6:4; Eph. 
4:1; Eph. 5:8). Then, when we are striving for the 
faith, putting away all sin, abstaining from all appear- 
ance of evil, perfecting holiness, hating defilement, fol- 
lowing after that which is good, overcoming the world, 



Christian Living 404 

adorning the Gospel (Phil. 1 127; I Cor. 5:7; I Thess. 
5:22; Matt. 5:48; Jude 23; Phil 4:8; I Jno. 5:4, 5; 
Matt. 5 :i6; Tit. 2:10), we will show a good example, 
by abounding in the work of the Lord, shunning the 
wicked, controlling the body, subduing the temper and 
living peaceably with all men (I Cor. 15 158; Ps. 1:1; 
I Cor. 9:27; Eph. 4:26; Rom. 12:18; Heb. 12:14). 
Then, too, we will attain the Christ-like ability to sub- 
mit to injuries and forgive them (Matt. 5:39-41; I 
Cor. 6:7; Matt. 6:14; Rom. 12:20) and by visiting 
the afflicted, sympathizing with others, submitting to 
authorities, being liberal to and honoring others, being 
contented and by doing as we would be done by (Matt. 
25 '-36 ; Gal. 6 :2 ; Rom. 12 :io ; Acts 20 :35 ; Rom. 13 :i- 
7; Phil. 4:11; Heb. 13:5); attain blessedness (Ps. 
1:1-3; Matt. 5:3-1^; Jno. 15:10). 

404. Is Joining the Church a Means of Salva- 
tion? 

Christ demands that his followers confess him before 
men (see Luke 12:8, 9), and joining the church is the 
recognized method of doing so. We are ordered not 
to forsake "the assembling" of ourselves together in 
the Lord's House. It places us on record. Beside 
this, it is a means of grace. One who turns his back on 
God's Church and his people would be a very singular 
Christian, indeed. In associating with God's people 
there is mutual help and reinforced service. Then, 
too, the Christian would naturally wish to obey Christ's 
request, that his friends would remember him by par- 
taking together of the bread and wine. There may 
be obstacles in the way of a Christian joining a church, 
and we would not judge any man for holding aloof, 



405 Difficult Bible Questions 

but he should have very weighty reasons to justify 
him in doing so. Leading a good moral life and be- 
lieving in God are not, however, sufficient of themselves 
for salvation. God is not pleased when men ignore 
the way of salvation he has provided. Jesus saith, 
"No man cometh unto the Father but by me" (John 

i 4 :6). 

405. Does the Bible Urge Church Attendance? 

Yes. In both the Old and New Testaments there 
are numerous passages enjoining attendance in God's 
house as a duty, a delightful pleasure and a great 
spiritual privilege. See Lev. 8:3; Deu. 4:10; Psalms 
23:6; 26:8; 27:4; 84:1, 4, 10; 122:1; Neh. 13:11; 
Micah 4:2; Matt. 18:19, 20; Acts 4:31; 15:25; Heb. 
10:25. Take your reference Bible and look up, through 
the marginal notes, still other references. Church- 
going is both a duty and a privilege, and he who neg- 
lects it misses a great blessing and much of the enjoy- 
ment of spiritual life and growth. The Psalmist tells 
us that a day in God's courts is "better than a thou- 
sand." We are frequently reminded in the Scriptures 
that it is a duty. See Heb. 10 :25 ; Psalms in :i ; Matt. 
18 :20, and other passages. True there are other forms 
of public confession besides that of joining a church, 
but that is the ordinary and recognized mode. It is 
the duty of every Christian to identify himself with a 
Christian church, that he may make it known where 
he stands, that he may help in advancing Christ's 
kingdom and that his own soul may be nourished by 
the association with other Christians. 



Christian Living 406 

406. Is the Increase of Church Wealth and 
Worldly Resources to Be Regarded As 
a Healthy Spiritual Sign? 

History indicates that it is not a healthy sign. The 
periods of the church's worldly prosperity have usually 
been periods of moral decadence. There has been a 
tendency in such times to say, as did the church of 
Laodicea (Rev. 3:17), "I am rich and increased with 
goods, and have need of nothing.'' At the same time, 
the possession of riches is not incompatible with spirit- 
uality. There are, as we in this country have good 
reason to acknowledge, wealthy men who consecrate 
their wealth to God. A sincere Christian in business 
may prosper through the principles of Christianity, 
which conduce to industry, integrity and clean living. 
We can imagine a church composed of wealthy men 
being a church of great power, contributing liberally 
to the advance of Christ's Kingdom, and doing an 
immense amount of good in alleviating the burdens of 
the poor. There is nothing in wealth itself to render a 
man unfit for the Kingdom of God. It is hard for 
him to enter, as Christ said, because human nature is 
spt to love its wealth and to trust in it; but when a 
wealthy man really gives himself to the Lord, he has 
opportunities for service which do not lie within reach 
of the poor man ; and if he uses them faithfully, he is 
more useful, and accomplishes more good. There have 
been such men, and there still are such men. The 
church, like the individual, may trust in its riches; 
and if it does, it is in an unhealthy condition ; but it 
may consecrate its riches, and then it is capable of 
better service. We must look to other signs to learn 
if the possession of wealth has eaten into its soul, 

18 



407 Difficult Bible Questions 

making it proud, arrogant and sordid, or helpful, 
beneficent and compassionate, before we can say 
whether it is the better or the worse for its wealth. 

407. Is Confession a Christian Duty? 

"Confess your faults one to another" James 5:16. 
It makes the whole problem of confession simple to 
remember that the duty is to confess to those whom we 
have wronged. If we have done any wrong to any 
person, we must confess it to him, and ask him to for- 
give us. A wrong that affects no one but God and 
ourselves needs to be confessed only to God. Often, 
however, a public confession is helpful. Under the 
awakening of conscience a Christian may be led to 
feel that he has been living under false pretenses, and 
will find a relief in saying so, and in making a new 
start. After all, we ought not to dread confession so 
much as we do. The Christian has no righteousness 
of his own to uphold; his righteousness consists in» 
trusting Christ. Paul liked to declare that he was, to 
all intents and purposes, so far as the law was con- 
cerned, a dead man ; he had been crucified with Christ, 
and Christ lived in him. He had no reputation to sus- 
tain. He liked to speak of himself as having been the 
chief of sinners. Then, too, people are apt to be kinder 
than we think ; our friends will not want to condemn 
us, but help us. But, on the other hand, this is often 
a fruitful source of cruel temptation to sensitive souls. 
They imagine they ought to speak of things which no 
one but God needs to know about. Remember that 
God is never unreasonable, nor harsh. Tell him all 
about it, and then he will tell you plainly and kindly 
whether any other confessions are necessary. 



Christian Living 408-409 

408. Is There Any Scriptural Authority for the 

Rite of Confirmation? 

The Apostle Paul is represented as confirming the 
souls of the disciples (Acts 14:22), and again as con- 
firming the churches (Acts 15 141) ; Judas and Silas did 
the same thing (Acts 15:32). It does not in these 
cases appear to have been a rite or ceremony. But 
there appears to have been some rite of the kind in the 
early church. The writer of Hebrews speaks (6:2) of 
"the doctrine of baptisms and of laying on of hands." 
He may have had reference to the laying on of hands, 
implying the gift of the Holy Spirit, as in Acts 8:17, 
and as Paul did (Acts 19:6). It seems to have been a 
Jewish idea of ancient date, as Jacob thus blessed 
Joseph's children (Gen. 48:14). The custom continued 
in Christ's time (see Matt. 19:13), when "there were 
brought unto him little children that he should put his 
hands on them, and pray." 

409. Is It Not Obligatory to Use Unleavened 

Bread at Communion? 

Nothing could be more foreign to Christ's spirit and 
teaching than the character which certain churches 
give to this simple meal. There is nothing occult or 
mysterious about it. Christ was founding a kingdom 
or society, and wished his followers to have some way 
of showing their membership in it. He would not 
have them forget that they were Christians. He bade 
them join together in a simple meal, which was a com- 
mon way of acknowledging equality and brotherhood. 
They were to come as Christians and eat and drink 
together in token of their being united in a commons 
bond of love for him. It was not to be an elaborate 



410 Difficult Bible Questions 

feast, but to consist of the common constituents of the 
ordinary meal of that time. As they ate the broken 
bread they were to think of his body which was broken 
for them, and as they drank the wine they were to 
remember how his blood was shed for them. To make 
a mass of it and invest the details with a significance 
never intended is to miss the majestic simplicity of 
Christ's conception and his purpose in instituting the 
ordinance. 

410. What Is Conscience? 

It is the moral sense in man, by which he judges 
between right and wrong, and which approves or con- 
demns his conduct. A man is bound to obey it in all 
his actions. He must, therefore, be careful to see that 
it is guided by right principles, that it is educated, and 
is not biased or warped by sophistry, or prejudice, or 
by impure motives. It has a standard in the Bible which 
should keep it true and firm. It is, however, quite pos- 
sible for a man to do wrong conscientiously ; in other 
words, his unenlightened conscience may mislead him. 
Paul gives an illustration (Acts 26:9) "I thought with 
myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the 
name of Jesus." The revelation on the way to Damas- 
cus changed that judgment of conscience and gave him 
a new principle on which he acted. Peter was con- 
scientious in his idea of food and of associating with 
Gentiles. It took a miracle to open his eyes (Acts 
10:28). The inquisitors were probably conscientious 
in persecuting protestants; Calvin was conscientious 
in burning Servetus, and the Puritans were conscien- 
tious in executing witches. But we see now, in our 
more enlightened age, that they erred. When a man 



Christian Living 411 

is uncertain as to the right course to take, he should 
pray for guidance and direction, should see what prin- 
ciples the Bible lays down in similar matters, and then 
let his conscience decide. He will be held responsible 
for obeying his conscience. 

411. Does Conscience Ever Approve Anything 
That Is Wrong, if so, How Can It Be the 
Voice of God in the Soul? 

Certainly, conscience may, and often does, approve 
things that are wrong. A conspicuous instance (as 
already noted), is that of the Apostle Paul, who verily 
thought that in persecuting the Christians he was 
doing God service. Many since his time have erred 
in the same way, while sincerely believing at the time 
that they were doing right. Conscience is the faculty 
of the mind which discerns the moral quality of a 
course of conduct, and passes judgment upon it, ac- 
cording to the standard of right and wrong which it 
has. If the standard be wrong, the decisions of con- 
science will be wrong. "There is a way," says Solo- 
mon, "that seemeth right unto a man ; but the end 
thereof are the ways of death." Conscience needs to 
be educated ; it must rely on knowledge and reason for 
its data; it has to avoid being warped by self-interest 
and being blunted by its environment. Paul speaks 
(I Cor. 8:7) of a weak conscience, that is one that 
sees wrong where there is no wrong. As a judge, it 
represents God in the soul, but it never exercises in- 
fallible judgment. It needs divine enlightenment and 
the development which comes from Bible-reading and 
prayer. It is, however, the "voice of God" within us 
in this respect, that it bids us do the right, so far as 



412-413 Difficult Bible Questions 

we can discern it, at any cost ; and as we obey or dis- 
obey, it rewards or punishes with sweet approval or 
stern condemnation. 

412. Is the Voice of Conscience That of the Holy 

Spirit? 

The facts of experience do not bear out the conclu- 
sion that conscience and the Holy Spirit are the same. 
Conscience is a faculty of the soul which approves or 
Condemns according as one has or has not done what 
he believes to be right. By study of the Bible, prayer 
and the counsel of Christian friends one often finds 
that what seemed formerly to be right was in reality 
wrong. Paul believed he was doing right while per- 
secuting the Christians. The Hindu mother throwing 
her babe in the Ganges believes she is doing right, and 
her conscience approves; but when she becomes a 
Christian she knows that such a sacrifice is wicked. In 
all nations and times certain souls have been alert and 
humble enough to hear the direct messages of the Holy 
Spirit, but it is through the written Word, the message 
of the Gospel and the knowledge of Jesus that the 
Holy Spirit comes to be a positive and constant fact of 
experience. The Christian tests the messages that 
seem to come from him by the Bible, by the personality 
of Christ, by the advice of Christian friends (see I 
John 4). The messages of the Holy Spirit are clear 
and positive, not hesitating and confusing. In the 
enlightened Christian, the voice of conscience and the 
voice of the Spirit will always agree. 

413. How Can Consecration Be Accomplished? 

This question of consecration is one that frequently 
arises, yet when we stop to analyze it, it seems strange 



Christian Living 414 

that there should be any difficulty about it. If you 
possess anything which you wish to give to another, 
you simply give it to him; it is just as simple as that 
to give your whole heart and life to God. We already 
belong to him absolutely ; in consecration we are only 
returning what is his. This is the "one thing" lacking 
in countless lives to give them full spiritual meaning 
and direction. (See Rom. 12:1). The question how 
we can take ourselves out of God's hands should 
really be more difficult than the question how we 
may submit ourselves to him. Remember that God is 
always reasonable, always kind. Many of the things 
sometimes suggested to our minds when the subject 
of consecration is brought up are not the suggestion of 
the Holy Spirit, but of our own minds, or of disturbing 
spirits. There is no uncertainty about the voice of 
God. He only asks us to obey him when he makes 
duty clear, and has promised to give us grace and 
power always for the duties he lays upon us. There 
surely should be no unwillingness to submit our lives 
to him; he can care for them and direct them much 
better than we. Consecration becomes simple when we 
approach the cross of Christ. We realize there that 
he gave himself for us because we were sinners — be- 
cause of this very unwillingness in our hearts to sur- 
render ourselves to him. Knowing this it is not hard 
to commit ourselves absolutely to his love, trusting him 
to forgive our sins, to cleanse our hearts, to guide and 
to keep us. 

414, Is Conversion the Same as Regeneration? 

Conversion, when the term is used theologically, is 
the turning away from sin to God. It is the reversal 



415-416 Difficult Bible Questions 

of a man's course of life. After his conversion his de- 
sires and aims and principles of life cease to be toward 
enjoyment or self-gratification or worldly ambition and 
tend toward God and holiness. Regeneration is the 
new birth wrought by the Spirit of God upon the man. 
Thus conversion supposes some activity on the man's 
part, while in regeneration he is passive. As the 
Spirit operates on the spirit of man "making it willing 
in the day of his power/' the difference between the 
two terms is not of moment. 

415. How Is Conversion Accomplished? 

By prayer, by repentance of our sins, by sincerely 
accepting Christ as Saviour, by surrendering ourselves 
to him in all things as our guide, and by proclaiming 
our new allegiance and striving, with his help and in 
his strength, to regulate our lives according to his 
teachings. Conversion is a turning from sin to right- 
eousness, producing thus a change in our thoughts, 
desires, dispositions and daily lives, which is the work 
of the Holy Spirit upon the heart as the result of sav- 
ing faith. Conversion, however, in the sense of turning 
from sin and accepting Christ as Saviour, is distinct 
from regeneration, which is the work of the Spirit 
only. 

416. Are Impure Thoughts a Sign of Non-Con- 

version ? 

Every man has some avenue by which temptation 
most easily besets him. His duty is to exercise special 
vigilance at that avenue. He should study himself and 
find out how best to deal with the temptation. It is 
well to ascertain by recalling our periods of trial, 
what were the exciting causes, and avoid them in 



Christian Living 417 

future. Plenty of hard work, physical and mental, 
the pursuit of some absorbing subject of study, con- 
stant occupation, the avoidance of reverie, and of sug- 
gestive books, a careful attention to diet, and, above 
all, earnest prayer, especially whenever the evil 
thoughts arise, are the means we should use. But we 
must be continually on our guard against sudden 
temptation. We have to fight our battle, and it will 
be a hard one, but we may count on divine help, and 
if we are really in earnest, we will win the victory. 
We must act intelligently, as we would if we were 
afflicted with some physical disease and were seeking 
a cure. Thousands have fought the same battle and 
have won it. We should not doubt the reality of our 
conversion. That would undermine our strength. 

417. Does the Bible Anywhere Prohibit Danc- 
ing? 

Not specifically, but it condemns frivolity, folly and 
wickedness in every form. There are various points 
of Christian behavior applicable to modern life for 
which no specific rule or authority can be found in the 
Bible, as social conditions have greatly changed. 
Modern vices and indulgences have sprung up and 
these must be dealt with by the Christian as his con- 
science and judgment dictate. Dancing, though not 
in itself necessarily sinful, is exceedingly apt to degen- 
erate into sin. Had promiscuous dancing, as it exists 
in society today, been prevalent in Bible times (instead 
of the comparatively innocent amusement then known, 
and the ceremonial or religious dances), it would un- 
questionably have been a subject of denunciation as 
sweeping as that applied to any of the vices of the 



418-419 Difficult Bible Questions 

time. The purpose of the Scriptures is to give general 
principles for the new life and so leave us the great 
benefit of deciding for ourselves how to apply them. 
In modern dancing, the evil so far overbalances the 
good that it is indefensible and should not be sustained 
by Christians. 

418. Does God Send Disease? 

God governs the world by the natural laws which he 
has established, and it would be impossible to define 
the extent to which he uses those laws to work out 
his providential purposes. It is probable that, in some 
cases, where he sees that a child of his needs discipline, 
or to be laid aside from worldly work and association 
so as to be drawn nearer to him, he may permit sick- 
ness to come upon him. In some passages sickness is 
threatened as a punishment. (See Deu. 28:27, 59, 60 
and 61.) An instance is mentioned in Acts 12 123. On 
the other hand, it is certain that many diseases which 
afflict humanity are the result of disregard of sanitary 
laws, and although they may be used for the spiritual 
benefit of the sufferer, should not be attributed to God. 

419. How Can I Get Rid of Doubt? 

The only way out of any form of spiritual darkness 
is a firm faith in Christ. Spiritual darkness always 
means that in some way or other we are doubting him. 
We are often tempted to think that something else is 
necessary to be done before we begin to trust him, 
some sacrifice to make, some duty to perform, some 
problem to be solved. But these things come after 
faith, not before it. Of course if some positive wrong 
has been committed this wrong must be righted before 



Christian Living 420 

we can believe that Christ fully saves us. But where 
no such positive wrong has been done and no clear 
duty neglected, the first, and indeed the only require- 
ment is to trust in Christ. Any other advice would be 
false. "Christ died for the ungodly." There is our 
only place of peace and light. When you believe that 
he died for you, that he died to make possible the for- 
giveness of your sins and the cleansing of your heart ; 
when you believe that because he died your sins are 
forgiven and your heart is cleansed, you will have 
peace, and you will find the Saviour near you, with his 
light and comfort and power. After all, it is no won- 
der that we feel sad while we are doubting him. You 
would feel sad if you were doubting your friend, your 
brother, your parent. And remember that he, too, is 
saddened by our doubt. Read some of the rich prom- 
ises of God's Word, and refuse any longer to doubt 
that they were written to you as well as to any other 
of his children: Isa. 55; Ezek. 36:25-27; Matt. 5:8, 
10; Matt. 77-n; John 7:38, 39; John 8:36; Acts 
2:14, 16-21, 39; Rom. 6; Rom. 8:11 ; II Cor. 7:1 ; Gal. 
3; Eph. 3:14-21; Col. 3; I Thess. 5:23; Heb. 4:9-11, 
7:25, 99:11-14; Heb. 10:1-22, 35; Heb. 11; I John 
3:1-9, 22\ I John 5:4; Jude 24, 25. 

420. Does a Truly Converted Person Have Evil 
Thoughts? 

Thoughts of evil may enter the minds of even the 
most saintly. So long as we are in the body we are 
subject to temptation, and there can be no temptation 
without a thought of the evil that is suggested. Every 
time we hear or see or read of an evil word or act we 
have the thought of evil. These thoughts are stored 



421 Difficult Bible Questions 

in the brain, become items in the great storehouse of 
memory, and are apt to recur to us at any time. There 
can be no sin in a thought itself; it is only our feeling 
about the thought and our decision what to do with it 
that has any moral quality. When our hearts have 
been filled with love for God and love for people we 
find this love making us repel the evil thought and 
turn toward the good. It is helpful to remember that 
what makes a thing evil is that it will harm somebody. 
When we love people, we shall not want to harm them 
in body, mind or soul, and the thought of love will con- 
quer and expel the thought of evil. It is in this sense 
that "love is the fulfilling of the law," and that "perfect 
love casteth out fear," as well as other sinful emotions. 
We may thus bring into captivity every thought to the 
obedience of Christ. 

421. Is It Possible to Rid Oneself of Inherited 
Evil Tendencies? 

We are not quite sure that we are justified in holding 
our ancestors altogether responsible for our evil ten- 
dencies. Some people like to hold Satan responsible 
for a share. It is, however, always advisable to in- 
quire how far a man himself is deserving of blame. 
Probably, if it can be proved that he had nothing to do 
with the origin of them, still he may have assisted in 
their development. There is no doubt that he can, at 
least, be delivered from indulging his evil tendencies, 
even if they are not entirely extirpated. That is what 
Christ came to do. He offers us the power we need to 
bring our natures under subjection. The Holy Spirit 
in the heart so reinforces the better part of our nature 
that it gains power enough to hold the evil tendencies 



Christian Living 422 

in subjection. They then so lose their power that they 
cease to be a danger, and, like any other part of our 
being that is not used, become weak. We must help in 
working out our own salvation. We must avoid temp- 
tation, and must be vigilant in preventing outbreaks. 
God will help us if we are sincere, and with Almighty 
help, what is there that is not possible? 

422. What Does Faith Do for Us? 

" Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the 
evidence of things not seen" (Heb. n:i). We are 
commanded to have faith in God and in Christ (Jno. 
14:1; Jno. 6:29) and yet it, of itself, is the gift and 
work of God in us, through the Holy Ghost by the 
Scriptures and preaching and other means (Rom. 
12:3; Eph. 2:8; Acts 11:21; I Cor. 2:5; Heb. 12:2; 
I Cor. 12:9; Jno. 20:31 ; Jno. 17:20), causing by these 
means of grace, repentance and thereafter conversion 
(Mark 1:15; Acts 11:21). Through faith we obtain 
remission of sins, justification, salvation, sanctification, 
adoption of and access to God, the gift of the Holy 
Ghost, spiritual light and life, edification, preservation, 
eternal life and rest in heaven (Acts 10:43; R° m - 
3:25; Acts 13:39; Mark 16:16; Acts 15:9; Jno. 1 :ia; 
Gal. 3:26; Rom. 5:2; Eph. 3:12; Acts 11:15-17; Jno. 
12:36, 46; Jno. 20:31; Gal. 2:20; Jno. 3:15-16; Heb. 
4:3). Faith is essential to the profitable reception of 
the Gospel ; it makes the Gospel effectual in those who 
have faith ; it is necessary in the Christian warfare, and 
without it it is impossible to please God (Heb. 4:2; 
I Thess. 2:13; I Tim. 1:18, 19; Heb. 11:6). The ef- 
fect of faith in us is to produce hope, peace, confidence, 
boldness in preaching and testifying and, as Christ is 



423 Difficult Bible Questions 

precious to those having faith and dwells in their heart, 
they live, stand, walk, obtain a "good report/' work in 
love, overcome the world, resist the devil (Rom. 5:2; 
Acts 16:34; Rom. 15:13; Is. 28:16; I Pet. 2:6; I Pet 
2\J\ Eph. 3:17; Gal. 2:20; Rom. 4:12; Heb. 11:2; I 
Jno. 5 14, 5 ; I Pet. 5 :g ; Ps. 27 113 ; I Tim. 4:10). There- 
fore we should be sincere, strong and steadfast ; hold- 
ing our faith with a good conscience and not only 
praying for the increase, but having full assurance of 
it (I Tim. 1 :5 ; II Cor. 8 7 ; Acts 14 \22 ; Rom. 4 :20-24 ; 
I Cor. 16:13; Col. 1:23; I Tim. 1:19; Luke 17:5; II 
Tim. 1 :i2). Then will we be known by our fruits, as 
without fruits our faith is dead (Jas. 2:21-25; Jas. 
2:17, 20, 26), and as all difficulties are overcome by 
faith, so all things should be done by it, never fearing 
as we are fully protected by our shield and breast- 
plate (Matt. 17:20, 21:21; Rom. 14:22; Eph. 6:16; 
I Thess 5:8). 

423. What Is Faith? 

Faith is trust. It is the gift of God, wrought in 
the heart by the Holy Spirit, which quickens and 
directs all our faculties toward the one object. We 
must pray to have faith, and to have our faith in- 
creased. It will be strengthened, too, by the frequent 
remembrance of Christ's repeated promises that our 
prayers to the Father, in his name, would assuredly be 
heard and answered, if we asked in faith, and believed 
while we asked. See Matt. 7 :y ; Luke 11:9; John 
14:13, 15, 16; James 4:2; I John 3:22, 5:14; Luke 
11:10. Faith has been defined as "the substance of 
things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" 
(Heb. 11 :i) ; it is that operation of the soul in which 



Christian Living 424 

we are convinced of the existence and truth of some- 
thing that is not before us, or perceptible to the human 
senses. Every one entertains faith of some kind, which 
he would find it difficult if not impossible to demon- 
strate by visible means. It is the practice of faith— the 
voluntary exercise of it — which enables us to rise to 
the belief in those great truths which God has been 
pleased to reveal. Paul says that "we walk by faith, 
not by sight" (II Cor. 5 :y). Jesus himself said (John 
20:29), "Blessed are they that have not seen and yet 
have believed." Thus, while believing what we see 
and comprehend may have its merits, believing what is 
not seen and but dimly comprehended is a greater 
merit. There are many things in nature which we be- 
lieve, yet without being able to fully grasp them with 
our minds ; we believe because we have the evidence of 
others, though not of our own senses. The faith which 
simply believes what it can see, understand, define and 
demonstrate is not real faith at all. "No man hath 
seen God at any time," yet all men believe in a God. 
The things of the spiritual world cannot be demon- 
strated by mere material agencies, but only through 
spiritual agencies. The exercise of faith increases our 
spirituality, enables us to comprehend things which 
without such exercise would be incomprehensible. Paul 
said that to the learned Greek skeptics the Gospel was 
"foolishness." Pride of intellect is one of the greatest 
barriers to spiritual growth. 

424. Is a Falsehood Ever Justifiable? 

One who makes faith in God and obedience to his 
will the supreme rule of his life, will never find excuse 
or justification for a lie. Man's extremity is God's 



425 Difficult Bible Questions 

opportunity and it is in such crises, when our faith is 
put to the ultimate test, that the Almighty reaches 
out and succors our weak nature with his Divine 
strength and help. We are distinctly told not to do 
evil that good may come and that all liars "shall have 
their place in hell fire, which is the second death." 
God can deliver those who trust in him in every conflict 
and those who are so situated are safe according to 
the measure of their faith. See Is. 26 14 ; Psalm 3 15 
and 118:8; also Psalm 15. Lying in all its forms is 
expressly forbidden by the Lord. (Lev. 19:11; Col. 
3:9.) It is hateful to him. (Prov. 6:16-19.) It 
shuts out the liar from heaven (Rev. 21:27), and 
those who are guilty of it find their ultimate abode in 
hell. (Rev. 21 :8.) A full faith, such as that of the 
glorious men and women who have illumined the 
world with their lives, will not hesitate to tell the truth 
and leave the result in God's hands, trusting to the 
Omnipotent arm for safety. 

425. What Is the Effect of Forgiveness? 

Some may ask: "Has God forgotten all about my 
sins now that they are forgiven, and if so why do we 
not forget?" God says in Is. 43:25 and Jer. 31:34 
that he will not remember our transgressions. The 
sense of "remember" in these passages is clearly that 
God does not remember the sin against the sinner. The 
account is canceled ; the sins are no longer imputed to 
him. Since the revelation of God's plan of the atone- 
ment, we see that the debt is paid. When a debt is 
paid it is forgotten, though the record of the transac- 
tion may remain in the memory of the people con- 
cerned. In this sense God forgets our sins, but there 



Christian Living 425 

is no reason for supposing that he undoes or limits his 
omniscience by literally not knowing that certain past 
events have occurred. We know of them, and God 
cannot observe our own minds without seeing there 
the record of our sin. There are various passages in 
Scripture in which God recalls his forgiveness of the 
iniquities of his people, but the remembrance is not an 
accusation but rather a testimony of forgiveness. We 
cannot, by the exercise of the will, make ourselves for- 
get anything. It would be a subtle and almost incon- 
ceivable miracle for God to disentangle from our brains 
the memory of our sins and yet leave there the memory 
of other acts and events of the same days and hours. 
While we know that, in every sense of debt or blame, 
God forgets our sins when he forgives us, it should 
help to restrain people from sin to recognize the fact 
that a sin once committed will probably never be 
erased from our memory, at least in this life, and that 
it can never be lost from the simple, truthful record of 
the world's events. This is good for us as a reminder 
and as a stimulant. Seeing the dangers we have escaped 
helps us against having serious lapses. Not that we 
are become sinless, but, thanks to the promises in I 
John 3 19, w T e are rid of the dominion of sin, and 
the lapses we do have are not inputed. Therefore, let 
none despair in the thought that anything in the past, 
great or small, can prevent them from having God's 
peace in their souls just now. Salvation is a present 
matter. So far as our present standing in Christ 
is concerned it does not make any difference w r hether 
we were converted at the time we were baptized or not. 
The only question is : "Will we trust Christ just now to 

19 



426 Difficult Bible Questions 

forgive all the sins of the past and to make us truly 
his?" There are promises in the Bible, by the score, 
of forgiveness for any sinner who will ask for it. 
Murderers, thieves, drunkards, all sorts of sinners, 
have found these promises true and received God's 
peace in their souls. God will forgive and forget, and 
let you start all over again now ? Cease doubting him. 
Begin to trust him and your trouble will disappear. 
Read Gal. 5:6; II Cor. 7:2; Is. 55:7; Is. 1:18; Is. 
43 25- 

426. Is It Right to "Fear" God? 

The word "fear," as used in the Bible, has two dis- 
tinct meanings — fear in the sense of dread or fright, 
and fear in the sense of reverence and sincere obedi- 
ence. It is not easy to determine which meaning is in- 
tended for the two Hebrew words most used have both 
meanings. In the New Testament the Greek word used 
has more generally the sense of fright or dread. The 
whole message of the Bible is that what God most ear- 
nestly desires from mankind is their love. But sin keeps 
them from loving him, so he reveals to them, through 
conscience, and through the law, the fearful results 
of sin. This awakens a fear which drives them to him 
for pardon and safety. A man who is living in sin, 
when his conscience is aroused, is afraid of the power 
and the justice of God. After he is pardoned he feels 
a reverence for God and the beginnings of love for 
him. As he progresses in the Christian life all fear of 
God, in the sense of terror, is removed. John speaks 
of the "perfect love which casteth out fear." (I John 
4:18.) Throughout the Christian life reverence abides, 
but love grows more and more dominant. The won- 



Christian Living 427-428 

derful word is "friendship." God wants us to be 
friends of his, as Abraham and Moses were, to serve 
him because we love him, to be glad in the gifts his 
love bestows. Christ would like to lead us all to the 
place where he can say to us as he said to his disciples : 
"Henceforth, I call you not servants, but I have called 
you friend." (John 15:15.) 

427. Why Was Not Foot-washing Kept Up as 

Well as the Lord's Supper? 

Foot-washing in the early centuries and in Orien- 
tal lands stood for kindly service and for comfort and 
hospitality. A guest would wash the dust from his 
visitor's feet, after removing his sandals, just as we 
take a friend's coat and hat and hang them up for him. 
Of course, the specific acts change with changing cus- 
toms and even with climatic conditions, but the spirit 
is the same. We want to show our friends that we 
are willing to serve them. Christ emphasized this by 
his performing this service (a universal one in the 
East) for the disciples, though he was recognized as 
their Teacher, Master and Leader. It was a concrete 
sign of his whole message that his followers must be 
humble, and quick to serve others. He did not limit 
this spirit and motive to one act of life, but insisted that 
it become the principle of action for our whole lives. 
The courtesies and kindnesses that hosts show to guests 
Christians must show to one another at all times and 
in all ways, and to all whom they meet. 

428. Are We to Forgive the Wrongdoer if He 

Does Not Ask It? 

Christ inculcates the forgiving spirit, the spirit which 
loves even an enemy. It is the spirit he displayed on 



429 Difficult Bible Questions 

the cross when he prayed to his Father for the soldiers 
who nailed him to the cross, though they did not pray 
for themselves nor express contrition. Resentment 
is forbidden, but on the other hand, we have a right to 
expect regret on the part of the wrongdoer. He has 
no right to assume that we shall pass over his wrong 
as if he had never done it. If he wants our forgive- 
ness he should ask for it; but even before he asks we 
must be ready to grant it. In our hearts we may 
already have forgiven him, but the outward and for- 
mal reconciliation waits his contrition. In Matt. 18:15 
there is an intimation that the one who has suffered 
the wrong should seek to bring about the contrition of 
the wrongdoer by going to him and telling him his 
fault. If after all he withholds it, we are not required 
to treat him as a brother, but even then we are not to 
cherish resentment and especially not retaliation, but 
rather to return good for evil. In Matt. 5 123, 24 it 
would seem to have been quarrels that our Lord had 
in mind, rather than injuries. The brother who has 
aught against you appears to indicate a grudge, or a 
debt, as the following verses suggest. In any case, 
there is to be no quarrel. There must be reconcilia- 
tion first. 

42£ ■. In What Sense Is Godliness Profitable in 
This Life? 

Since God's Word declares that godliness is profita- 
ble for the life that now is, it must affect favorably a 
man's temporal affairs. The necessities of life are 
promised to those who seek first the kingdom of God. 
He who contemplates being godly for the sake of gain 
does not know what true godliness is (see I Tim. 6:5; 



Christian Living 430 

also Acts 8:19). Under the old covenant, godliness in 
the nation assured national prosperity. Better bless- 
ings are promised under the New Testament dispensa- 
tion. Temporal prosperity is, however, still a rational 
sequence of godliness. The higher the tone of the 
mental and moral qualities the better the business qual- 
ifications. Godliness demands industry, economy, hon- 
esty, courtesy, patience, hope — all most useful in tem- 
poral affairs. "The supplication of a righteous man 
availeth much in its working" (James 5:16), and he 
is permitted to pray for prosperity in temporal affairs. 
We are encouraged to bring everything, by prayer, 
unto God (Phil. 4:6). 

430, How Can We Grow in Grace? 

A fair equivalent of the word "grace" is "blessing." 
Grace means, in the first place, the disposition which 
God has toward us; that is, his willingness to bless 
us ; his love and favor. It means, also, the blessing 
received, the state or experience into which we are 
brought by God's blessing. There is always in the 
word "grace" the idea of something bestowed entirely 
without merit or payment on the part of the one who 
receives it. God's blessings are bestowed freely; we 
do not earn them; he blesses us because he loves us, 
because he is gracious. All he asks is that we shall 
be willing to receive his grace. This promise to Paul 
means that God will give him the necessary strength to 
bear the affliction, and also, as Paul implies in the 
remainder of the verse, that the happiness of the bless- 
ing will balance the distress of the thorn. 

To grow in grace means to advance and develop in 
spiritual experience and power. The Christian grows 



431 Difficult Bible Questions 

in grace in the first place by growing in faith. The 
more we believe, the more complete we entrust our 
souls and all the details of our lives to God, the more 
we are blessed. We grow in grace by our work for 
God. Religious work develops spiritual muscle just 
as physical work develops physical muscle. The more 
we do the more we can do. Prayer, study of the Bible, 
fellowship with spiritually-minded people, attendance 
at divine worship and prayer services, taking part in 
these services, will help us to grow in grace. We should 
remember, however, that all grace is bestowed by God 
himself; as we meet the conditions and enlarge our 
capacity he gives us more grace, just as he gives us 
more physical and mental strength when we meet the 
conditions for physical and mental growth. 

431. What Is "the Blessing of Giving"? 

The generous heart is commended in many passages 
in the Scripture, and especially where that generosity 
has the poor for its object. We are told to remember 
the poor (see Lev. 25 135 ; Deu. 15 7), to be a helper to 
the fatherless (see Ps« 68:5; Ps. 10:14), and the widow 
(Is. 1:17), to visit those in affliction (James 1:27), 
and let them share our abundance (Deu. 14:29) ; and 
many blessings are promised to those who do these 
things. The bountiful are especially blessed wherever 
they give to any worthy cause or person (Deu. 15 :io). 
Remember also that remarkable promise, "He that 
hath pity on the poor lendeth to the Lord" (see Prov. 
19 :i7). It is a fine thing to lay up treasure in heaven, 
and we can do this only by doing God's work with the 
means at our disposal here. If we use his gifts for our 
own indulgence and pleasure, it will profit us nothing 



Christian Living 432 

in the end ; but if we apply them to his glory and the 
benefit of our fellow beings who need help more than 
we do, we shall then be doing his work, and shall 
receive his approval. In II Cor. 8:12 the apostle 
speaks of the cheerfulness and willingness with which 
believers should give to the Lord's work. He does not 
limit the giving to a tenth, but urges them to give 
freely and to spare not, that their abundance may make 
up for the lack in others. The widow's mite (Luke 
21 :3, 4) was the largest offering, in a sense, for she 
gave all she had, and her faith and generosity were 
commended above those that gave far richer gifts. 
There are many worthy people who practice tithing 
and we would not dissuade them, and there are others 
who do not limit their gifts to a tenth, but exceed it, 
and they, too, are worthy of commendation. God looks 
at the spirit of the gift more than at the gift itself. 
There are cases in which a tenth might work hardship 
and, on the other hand, there are many where a tenth 
would be a small offering. 

432. What Does "Loving God" Mean? 

The duty and privilege of loving God become clear 
and simple when we think of Christ. Aside from him, 
the human conceptions of God are such that it is diffi- 
cult to realize just what it would mean to love him. 
But friendship for Christ can be very real and precious. 
This is a definite part of God's whole wonderful plan. 
He came to earth in the person of Jesus and won just 
a few friends. These men and women loved him 
ardently. They loved him as a companion and friend. 
When he had gone away they loved him with the same 
definiteness and intensity and felt that he was still with 



433 Difficult Bible Questions 

them. Paul, who had never seen him in the flesh, 
loved him with just the same passion and fervor as did 
Peter and John, who had seen him. And all these early 
Christians knew that in loving Jesus they were loving 
God. As Professor Herrmann of Marburg says : "In 
their minds all difference between Christ and God 
himself vanished." He was God; they knew it. And 
as they loved him and labored for him and went toward 
death for him, they knew that they were fulfilling the 
old command, that had been so strange and difficult 
before, to love the Lord their God with all their heart 
and with all their soul and with all their mind and with 
all their strength. This same ^experience is possible 
today for every believer. Christ can be to every one 
of us that ever present Friend in whose companionship 
we delight and for whom we live and should be willing 
to die. 

433. How May We "Reflect" God? 

The marginal reading in the Revised Version (II 
Cor. 3 :i8) gives "reflecting" instead of beholding. 
This makes the meaning much clearer. Christians 
should be mirrors, reflecting the glory of God. Visitors 
to the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican procure small 
mirrors which enable them to enjoy the great paintings 
of Michael Angelo on the ceiling without discomfort. 
Worldly people will not look at God, but they do look 
at us, and they should see God reflected in us, as the 
great master's paintings are reflected in the mirror. As 
we thus behold and reflect God we become constantly 
more like him ("are transformed into the same image") 
going from one glorious stage of experience to another 
("from glory to glory"). "Even as from the Lord 



Christian Living 434 

the Spirit" (R. V.) means in a manner that befits the 
character and manner of the Holy Spirit. He works 
this transformation in us in the same perfect, adequate, 
godlike manner in which he always works. Compare 
Ex. 34:29-35; Ps. 34:5; Acts 4:13. Read the whole 
of this chapter and the next, II Cor. 3 and 4. 

434. How Is One to Know that He Is Living 
Close to God? 

If we ask, in the name of his dear Son, for a daily 
infusion of strength and grace sufficient for our needs, 
he will grant our petition. Perhaps nowhere is the 
Christian life better expressed than in these lines from 
Professor David Smith. He is speaking of Christian 
duty: "The man who bravely goes his hard way by 
and by discovers God by his side. But there is a richer 
discovery — the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord ; 
and it is revealed through love of one's fellow creatures. 
Keep your heart sweet and gentle; refrain from con- 
tention ; look with kindly and sympathetic eyes on your 
fellow creatures, men and beasts and birds; consider 
their griefs and sufferings, and lend them your best 
comfort and succor. It is only as we love like him 
that we know the wonder and glory of his love. There 
lies the twofold secret of reconciliation, of the linking 
of our little lives with the eternal order. Obey, and 
you will know ; love, and the love of Christ will be shed 
abroad in your heart. And once the love of Christ 
takes possession of you, life will be more precious and 
wonderful in your eyes, and you will understand what 
St. Peter means by 'joy unspeakable and full of glory' — 
that deep, strong gladness which comes of the persua- 
sion that the ultimate fact in the universe is the Love 



435-436 Difficult Bible Questions 

of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, the love which died 
on the cross for pity of the world's woe." 

435. What Does Adoption by God Involve? 

"And I will be a Father unto you and ye shall be 
my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (II 
Cor. 6:18). Such adoption is according to promise, 
by God's grace, through Christ, and we take it by 
faith (Gal. 3:7, 26; Rom. 9:8: Eze. 16:3-6; Rom. 
4:16, 17; Jno. 1:12). Saints are predestinated unto 
adoption and are gathered together in one by Christ 
(Rom. 8:29; Jno. 11 '.52), whereupon they become his 
brethren (Jno. 20:17). Our new birth is connected 
with our adoption, the Holy Spirit is a witness of it, 
and by leading us gives us evidence of it (Jno. 1 :i2, 
13 ; Rom. 8 :i5, 16 ; Rom. 8 :i4). This adoption should 
lead to holiness and should work in us likeness to God 
and childlike confidence in God (Matt. 5:44, 45, 48; 
Matt. 6:25-34) ; a desire for God's glory, love of peace, 
spirit of prayer, forgiveness and mercy (Matt. 5:16, 
7:7-11, 5:9, 6:14; Luke 6:35, 36). 

436. What Is "Loving God" and What Does It 

Avail ? 

Love to God is commanded (Deu. 11 :i) and is, 
indeed, the one great commandment (Matt. 22 :38). It 
should be with all the heart, and is better than sacrifice 
(Deu. 6:5; Mark 12:33). It is produced by the Holy 
Ghost and engendered by God's love to us and by 
answers to prayer (Gal. 5:22; I Jno. 4:19; Ps. 116:1). 
Christ gave us an example of it, and it is a character- 
istic of saints (Jno. 14:31; Ps. 5:11). Those who 
have this love are known to God, and are preserved 



Christian Living 437 

and delivered by him ; they partake of his mercy and 
all things work together for their good (I Cor. 8:3; 
Ps. 145:20; Ps. 91 114; Ex. 20:6; Rom. 8:28). When 
persevering (Jude 21), and exhorting one another 
(Ps. 31:23), saints will have joy, they will have a 
hatred of sin. In their hearts will be obedience to God, 
and he, besides being faithful to those who love him, 
will fulfill in them his promises (Ps. 5:11; I Jno. 5 :i ; 
Ps. 97:10; Deu. 30:20; Deu. 7:9; Deu. 13:3; Deu. 
11:13; Ps. 69:36; Jas. 1:12). This love to God nat- 
urally leads to love to Christ. Here again we have a 
good example set by God himself and by the saints 
(Matt. 17 :5 ; Jno. 5 :20 ; I Pet. 1 :8) . Such love to him 
should be manifested in seeking, obeying, ministering, 
preferring him to all others, and in taking up his 
cross (Jno. 14:15; Matt. 27:55; Matt. 10:37; Matt. 
10:38). It is characteristic of saints and an evidence 
of adoption. Those who have it are loved by both 
God and Christ, and enjoy communion with them 
(Song of Sol. 1:4; Jno. 8:42; Jno. 14:21, 23; Jno. 
16 \2J ; Jno. 14 :23) . Such love should be sincere, ardent, 
supreme, unquenchable and "unto death" (Eph. 6:24; 
Song of Sol. 1 7; Matt. 10:37; Song of Sol. 2:5, 8:7; 
Acts 21 :i3; Rev. 12:11). 

437. Why Should We Praise God and How 
Should We Do So? 

We should praise God because he is worthy of and 
glorified by our praise (II Sam. 22 '.4; Ps. 22 :23). We 
should praise him because it is due to his majesty, 
glory, excellency, greatness, holiness, wisdom, power, 
goodness, mercy, loving-kindness, truth and his won- 
derful works (Ps. 96:1, 6; Ps. 138:5; Ex. 15:7; I 



437 Difficult Bible Questions 

Chron. 16:25; Ex. 15:11; Dan. 2:20; Ps. 21:18; Ps. 
107:8; II Chron. 20:21 ; Ps. 138:2; Is. 25 :i ; Ps. 89:5). 
Also on account of his gifts to us as are consolations, 
judgment, counsel, fulfilling of his promises, pardon 
of sin, spiritual health, constant preservation, deliver- 
ance, protection, answering prayer, the hope of glory, 
and all temporal and spiritual blessings (Ps. 42:5; Ps. 
101 :i ; Ps. 16 7 ; I Kin. 8 :56 ; Ps. 103 -.1-3 ; Ps. 103 :3 ; 
Ps. 71:6-8; Ps. 4o;i-3 Ps. 28:7; Ps. 28:6; Ps. 118:21; 
I Pet. 1:3, 4; Ps. 103:2; Eph. 1:3; Ps. 104:1, 14; Ps. 
136:25). Such praise of God is obligatory on angels, 
saints, gentiles, children, high and low, young and old, 
small and great, all men and all creation (Ps. 103:20; 
Ps. 30:4, 117:1, 8:2, 148:1, 12; Rev. 19:5; Ps. 107:8, 
148:1-10). This praise is good and comely (Ps. 33:1 ; 
Ps. 147:1), and should be offered with the understand- 
ing, soul, heart, with uprightness, joy, gladness, thank- 
fulness (Ps. 47:7, 103:1, 9:1, 119:7, 63:5; II Chron. 
29:30; I Chron. 16:4). It should be offered continually, 
more and more, day and night, forever and forever 
(Ps. 35* 2 8, 104:33, 71:14; Rev. 4:8; II Chron. 30:26; 
Ps. 145:1, 2). And may be expressed in psalms and 
hymns, accompanied with musical instruments (Ps. 
105:2; I Chron. 16:41, 42) and as a part of public 
worship (Ps. 9:14, 100:4, 118:19, 20). In this worship 
we should glory, triumph, express our joy by it, de- 
clare, invite others to it, pray for ability to offer it, be 
embued with the spirit of praise under all circum- 
stances, even under afflictions (I Chron. 16:35; P s - 
106:47; Jas. 5:13; Is. 42:12; Ps. 34:3, 5I-I5; Is. 
61:3). This praise has ever been highly thought of. 
Thus it has been called the fruit of the lips, voice of 



Christian Living 438 

triumph, voice of melody, voice of psalm, sacrifice of 
praise and of joy (Heb. 13:15; Ps. 66:8, 47:1; Is. 
51:3; Ps. 98:5; Heb. 13:15; Ps. 27:6). 

438. What Is God's Pardon and to What Should 
It Lead? 

Pardon for our sins was promised to us (Is. 1:18; 
Jer. 31:34; Heb. 8:12). There can be none without 
the shedding- of blood and legal sacrifices and outward 
purifications are ineffectual as only through the blood 
of Christ is it efficacious (Lev. 17:11 ; Heb. 9:22; Heb. 
10:4; Jer. 2:22; Zee. 13:1; I Jno. 1:7). God alone 
can grant this pardon and does so by and through 
Christ and his blood (Dan. 9 :g ; Mark 2 7 ; Luke 7 148 ; 
Luke 1 :6g, // ; Matt. 26 '.28). He grants it for Christ's 
sake, freely, abundantly, readily to those who confess 
their sins, repent and believe (I Jno. 2:12; Is. 43:25; 
Xeh. 9:17: Is. 55:7; I Jno. 1:9; Acts 2:38; Acts 
10 143) . By so doing God shows his compassion, grace, 
mercy, forbearance, loving kindness, justice and faith- 
fulness (Mic. 7:18, 19; Rom. 5:15; Ex. 34:7; II 
Chron. 30:18; Rom. 3 :25 ; Ps. 51 :i ; I Jno. 1 :g). The 
result of such pardon is the forgiving, removing and 
blotting out of transgression, the covering of, and 
blotting out of sin and not mentioning or remembering 
transgressions any more (Ps. 32:1, 103:12; Is. 44:22; 
Ps. 32:1; Acts 3:19; Eze. 18:22; Heb. 10:17). This 
great and free gift should lead us to return to God, 
love him, fear and praise him (Is. 44:22; Luke 7:47; 
Ps. 130:4; Ps. 103:2. 3). It should also induce us to 
pray for it for ourselves and for others and to strive 
to become worthy of it as the unforgiving, unbelieving 



439-440 Difficult Bible Questions 

and impenitent cannot share in it (Ps. 25 :ii ; Jas. 5:15; 
Mark 11:26; Jno. 8:21, 24; Luke 13:2-5). 

439. What Is Meant by "Devotedness to God"? 

We should be devoted to God because of his mercies 
(Rom. 12:1), of his goodness (I Sam. 12:24) and 
because of the call with which he invites us to him. 
The death of Christ and our redemption should be 
compelling forces. Our devotedness should be unre- 
served (Matt. 6:24), abounding (I Thess. 4:1), per- 
severing (Luke 1 :74, 75; Luke 9:62), and in life and 
death (Rom. 14 :8). It should be with our whole being, 
thus, with our spirit (I Cor. 6:20), with our bodies 
(Rom. 12:1; I Cor. 6:20), with our members (Rom. 
6:12, 13), and with our substance (Ex. 22:29; Prov. 
3:9). This devotedness we should show by loving 
God (Deu. 6:5), serving him (I Sam. 12:24; Rom. 
12:11), walking worthy of him (I Thess. 2:12), doing 
all to his glory (I Cor. 10:31); bearing the cross 
(Mark 8:34), by self-denial (Mark 8:34), and by giv- 
ing up all for Christ (Matt. 19:21, 28, 29). 

440. Does God Communicate His Will in Any 

Other Way than by His Word? 

We believe that there are special cases of extreme 
difficulty in which, when guidance is sought, God does 
reveal to his children the way in which he wishes 
them to walk. This he does by interpositions of his 
providence. If we ask him for guidance in our trou- 
bles, in the name of his dear Son, he will not deny it. 
There are some who think they receive direction in 
dreams, or by casting lots, or by opening a Bible at 
random and noticing the first passage that catches the 



Christian Living 441-442 

eye. It is unwise to give heed to intimations supposed 
to reach us in such ways. They are utterly untrust- 
worthy and should be disregarded. 

441. What Is Grace? 

In theology, the word "grace" has been the hinge of 
three great historical controversies, and it is still a 
subject of varied interpretation. In the spiritual sense, 
it is divine favor or condescension to mankind individ- 
ually or collectively. In the concrete Gospel sense, it 
is the unmerited love and favor of God in Christ, as 
shown in the salvation freely provided for mankind 
(see Eph. 2 :g). It may also be described as the divine 
influence acting within the heart, regenerating, sancti- 
fying and keeping it. Grace brings the peace and joy 
of assurance. It is "the life of the soul, as the soul 
is the life of the body." 

442. Can the Church Heal by Faith Today? 

There are several religious bodies which teach 
faith-healing by prayer and the laying on of hands. It 
is not general, however, among the denominations. 
But while the divine power is as great today as in 
the time of the early Church, and while many remark- 
able instances of healing through faith and prayer are 
adduced, the usual teaching in the regular denomina- 
tions is that, in cases of sickness, we should employ 
the remedies at hand through medical skill or other- 
wise, and ask God's blessing on these means to effect 
a cure. There is no passage in the Scriptures, how- 
ever, which indicates that Christ intended the gift of 
faith-healing to cease with the apostles. On the con- 
trary, the inference is quite clear, throughout the whole 



442 Difficult Bible Questions 

New Testament, that this gift was to remain, in the 
Church. We have so largely lost the gift because of 
our lack of faith, but there are numerous incidents 
being reported every day of miraculous healing in 
answer to prayer in the name of Christ. That there 
are not more cases is not proof that God's power is 
shortened, but results are proportioned to our faith. 
There are many instances in the Church today of won- 
derful answers to the prayer of faith. It is well to 
remember, however, that God has placed certain means 
within our reach and we should employ these means 
and ask his blessing upon them. Jesus himself never 
said anything in disparagement of the profession of 
Luke the "beloved physician." In James 5:15 it should 
be noted that the writer does not say that the oil will 
save; it is merely a symbol. The healing here men- 
tioned in the first clause of the verse is of the body; 
the second clause implies that the prayer of faith for 
one who has sinned will bring forgiveness. The same 
connection of sin and sickness is employed in Is. 
33 :24 ; Matt. 9 12-5, and John 5 114. See also Ps. 103 :3. 
The application is found in the next verse, which 
speaks of repentant confession. The oldest versions 
of this passage read, "Therefore, confess your faults 
one to another/' showing that it must be a precedent 
condition. This does not justify what is known as the 
confessional, however, in the sense in which it is em- 
ployed in the Church of Rome. There, all confessions 
must be made to the priests. Confession, in the 
apostolic sense, may be made to any one who is godly 
and who can pray. It is to be an open confession and 
not one whispered into the ear of a priest. 



Christian Living 443-444 

443. How Can One Obtain a "New Heart"? 

The sole resource is prayer and a constant striving 
against indulgence in sin. God is able to give a new 
heart, and when a man is sincerely desirous of obtain- 
ing that blessing there is no doubt of its being granted 
to him. God is more ready to bless us than we are to 
seek his blessing. But he does not confer his gifts 
unless they are sincerely sought. And there must be 
proof of sincerity by co-operation. If a man prayed 
that he might reach the top of a mountain, God would 
not take him bodily there, but he would give him the 
strength to climb. If you read the description of the 
condition of a man struggling against sin in Romans 
7, you will see that victory is obtained through the 
power that Christ gives. This power is freely granted 
to all who seek it, and through it any one may over- 
come evil. 

444. What Are the Consequences of Resisting 

the Holy Spirit? 

We are warned against the danger of resisting the 
Holy Spirit, and Paul (Eph. 4:30) admonishes the be- 
liever not to grieve the Holy Spirit. It is possible for 
one to refuse to obey the call of the Spirit, yet without 
placing himself outside of the pale of redemption. The 
Bible itself furnishes several instances of this charac- 
ter. We should advise any one who feels that he may 
have refused the call at one time to take a hopeful atti- 
tude, and to seek God's mercy and forgiveness with a 
contrite heart, remembering that the promise of for- 
giveness extends to "whosoever" may come. Jesus 
saves to the uttermost, and has assured us that he will 
not reject any one who comes to him in this spirit. 

20 



445-446 Difficult Bible Questions 

We can not set limits to God's mercy, and he is at all 
times more ready to forgive than we are to seek his 
forgiveness. 

445. In What Sense Is the Holy Spirit a Guide? 

The Holy Spirit is certainly promised in answer to 
believing prayer. (See Luke n 113.) See an account 
of his work in John 16:7-15. But the fact should not 
lead any one to be intolerant, or unreasonable. It is 
conceivable that a man might be so convinced that he 
is led of the Spirit to believe or do certain things, as 
to make grievous errors. He might believe himself 
infallible. The best and wisest men have in the past 
made that mistake. The humble, childlike believer 
seeks enlightenment and it may come to him through 
a preacher, or through private study, but he should 
keep his mind open to new light and should never 
assume, because he has reached a certain conclusion 
after prayer, that he is necessarily right. He may have 
been misled by ignorance or prejudice. In his talk 
with Nicodemus (John 3:8), Christ compared the 
operations of the Spirit to the movement of the wind, 
which could not be controlled or directed. We see 
this sometimes in revivals where we cannot account for 
one person being converted while another remains un- 
moved. But we may be quite sure that whenever any 
one sincerely desires the Holy Spirit's influence, God 
is more ready to bestow it than we can be to receive it. 

446. Should a Christian Be Joyful? 

God gives joy and Christ was appointed to give it, 
since the Gospels, which treat of him, are the "good 



Christian Living 446 

tidings" (Ecc. 2:26; Is. 61:3; Luke 2:10, 11) and 
God's Word affords joy (Neh. 8 :i2 ; Jer. 15 :i6). Joy 
is promised to saints, prepared for them and enjoined 
on them (Ps. 132:16; Is. 35 :io; Ps. 97:11 ; Ps. 32:11 ; 
Phil. 3:1). It is experienced by believers, peace- 
makers, the just, the wise, and discreet (Luke 24:52; 
Prov. 12:20; Prov. 21:15; Prov. 15:23). The joy of 
the saints is in God, Christ and the Holy Ghost; for 
their election, salvation, deliverance from bondage, 
manifestations of goodness, temporal blessings, supplies 
of grace, divine protection and support and the hope of 
glory (Ps. 89:16; Rom. 5 :ii ; Luke 1 47; Rom. 14:17; 
Luke 10:20; Ps. 21:1; Ps. 105:43; II Chron. 7:10; 
Joel 2:23; Is. 12:13; Ps. 5:11 ; Ps. 28:7; Rom. 5:2). 
These being grand blessings and advantages, their 
joy should be great, abundant, exceeding, animated, 
unspeakable, full, constant (Zee. 9:9; II Cor. 8:2; 
Ps. 21:6; Ps. 32:11; I Pet. 1:8; II Cor. 6:10; I Thess. 
5 :i6) and it should be manifest in every condition of 
life, such as in hope, sorrow, under trials and persecu- 
tions, in calamities and afflictions (Rom. 12:12; II 
Cor. 6:10; Jas. 1:2; I Pet. 1:6; Matt. 5:11, 12; Hab. 
3 :i7, 18). Such joy is made complete by the favor of 
God, by faith in Christ, the abiding in him and his 
Word, and by answer to prayer (Acts 2:28; Rom. 
15:13; Jno. 15:10, 11; Jno. 17:13; Jno. 16:24). When 
so conceived and practiced, the saints will serve God 
with gladness (Ps. 100:2). It will strengthen them 
(Neh. 8 :io) ; they will use it in all their religious serv- 
ices, have it in all their undertakings, and it shall finally 
be their reward at the judgment day (Eze. 6:22; Deu. 
12:18; Matt. 25:21). 



447 Difficult Bible Questions 

447. Is It Wrong to Judge Others? 

It is a common failing in humanity to pass judgment 
upon others and it is frequently attended by unfor- 
tunate results. We are expressly told in Scripture 
that judgment belongs to God. (See Matt. 7:1-5.) 
No matter what the occasion, it becomes the Christian 
to withhold his judgment, and particularly the open 
expression of it, lest he should be doing an injustice. 
There are cases, of course, where an act is so palpably 
wrong and so obviously done with wicked purpose, that 
we feel naturally disposed to condemn; but even here 
we may make a mistake, unless we are thoroughly 
familiar with all the antecedent circumstances. This 
reservation of judgment does not relate to the operation 
of the statute law, but to the individual. Paul tells 
us, in Romans 14 14, that we ought not to assume the 
right to condemn. Therefore, to tell a person that he 
is not a Christian, if he has a ring on his finger, is to 
assume a position to which we have no right. There 
may be a reason for his wearing it that we do not 
know ; it may be the gift of some relative or friend, or 
a memorial. To men impressed with the urgent need 
there is in the world for money to use for charity and 
religion, it would appear a duty to give all the money 
available to these causes and not to spend any of it on 
personal adornment. Arriving at such a conclusion, 
let him act upon it himself, and not hastily denounce 
others who may have different ideas of their duty. 
Above all, we should refrain from censorious gossip, 
which is a fruitful cause of ill-founded and wicked 
judgment of others. 



Christian Living 448-449 

448. Why Is Liberality to Be Commended? 

It is pleasing to God. He never forgets it. Christ 
set an example of it and it is characteristic of Saints 
(II Cor. 9:7; Heb. 6:io; II Cor. 8:9; Ps. 112:9). 
This good quality should be exercised in the service of 
God towards all men, such as saints, servants, the poor, 
strangers, and towards enemies (Ex. 35:21-29; Gal. 
6:10; Rom. 12:13; Deu. 15:12-14; Lev. 25:35; Prov. 
25 :2l). It should be demonstrated by lending to those 
in want, in giving alms, relieving the destitute, and in 
rendering personal services (Matt. 5:42; Luke 12:33; 
Is. 58:7; Phil. 2:30). In practice, however, we 
should be guided by these restrictions. We should be 
liberal without ostentation, with simplicity, should be 
willing and give abundantly (Matt. 6:1-3; Rom. 82:8; 
Deu. 16:10; Mat. 6:1-8; II Cor. 8:12; II Cor. 8:7). 
Its exercise provokes others to like goodness whereas 
the want of, while bringing to many a curse, is proof 
of not loving God, and of not having faith (II Cor. 
9 :2 ; Prov. 28 \2y ; I Jno. 3 :iy ; Jas. 2 : 14-16). Liberality 
is highly commended, blessings are connected with it 
and promises are given to those who practice it (Luke 
3:11, 11 :4i ; I Cor. 16:1 ; Ps. 41 :i ; Ps. 112:9; Prov. 
11:25). God's people were always noted for having 
this virtue, as see Prince of Israel, Num. y:2; Boaz, 
Ruth 2:16; David, II Sam. 9:7-10; Zacchaus, Luke 
19 :8 ; First Christians, Acts 2 :45 ; Barnabas, Acts 
4:36, 37; Cornelius, Acts 16:2; Lydia, Acts 16:15; 
Paul, Acts 20:34. 

449. How Does Christ Influence the Lives of 

Men? 

It is one of the most definitely and positively at- 
tested facts of history and of present-day life that mul- 



449 Difficult Bible Questions 

titudes of people have an experience of peace, power, 
purity and joy which grows out of their belief that God 
as manifested in the flesh of Jesus of Nazareth died 
for their sins. This experience is real, is tangible, is 
witnessed to ; it makes the lives of those who possess it 
altogether different from what they were before. When 
we ask if such an experience was possible before Christ 
died, the answer is very clear — No. Many Old Testa- 
ment saints had a very beautiful and exalted spiritual 
experience, but they could not have the experience of 
knowing that God in the flesh had died for their sins. 
The question of the relation of these facts to sin and 
the deliverance from it presents some philosophical 
difficulties, but no really practical difficulties. We can 
be sure that if any persons found deliverance from sin 
before Christ came they were comparatively few; but 
now the deliverance is offered to all. A few saints may 
have looked forward and grasped the glories of the 
atonement by faith ; we look back upon it as a historic 
fact and so appropriate its benefits. Again, it is un- 
deniably true that since the incarnation men have been 
able to get a totally new and infinitely clearer idea of 
God than if he had not manifested himself in the flesh. 
He has been interpreted to them in terms of human 
life, so it is now easy for them to comprehend how 
God thinks and acts and speaks. It is a higher revela- 
tion than that which came through the prophets : "God, 
who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in 
time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these 
last days spoken to us by his Son" (Heb. I :i, 2). It 
must certainly be true that the experience of loving 
Christ as a divine-human friend is different from the 



Christian Living 450 

experience of loving God as he was revealed in Old 
Testament times. And when, as has already been sug- 
gested, there is added the knowledge that he died to 
save us, there is a power and depth to the love that 
would otherwise have been impossible. The one who 
fully believes in Christ receives fully the benefits of 
his life, death and resurrection. The one who doubts 
must continue to miss them. 

450. Is Fasting Necessary to Christian Living? 

Fasting was voluntary in the early Christian Church. 
It was charged by his enemies that Christ's disciples 
"fasted not," while those of John did fast (Matt, n :i8, 
19). Our Lord did not positively enjoin religious fast- 
ing, and indeed he alluded in terms of censure to the 
frequent fasts of the Pharisees. His reference to the 
time which would come when, being deprived of the 
personal presence of the bridegroom, his disciples 
would fast, implied rather a season of general mourn- 
ing than of self-denial. In the Sermon on the Mount 
(Matt. 6:17) he recognizes the practice, but leaves the 
frequency and extent to the individual judgment. Fasts 
were undoubtedly observed by the early Christians 
(see Acts 13:2, 14:23; II Cor. 6:5), but these were 
probably a recognition of old established usage, handed 
down through generations. When it is remembered 
that a very large portion of the Christian Church was 
originally Jewish, it is not surprising that fasting, 
which was so marked a feature under the old dispensa- 
tion, should have been handed down from age to age 
and that it should be occasionally found to some extent 
in the church even at the present day. That it has 
merits, both spiritual and physical, may not be gain- 



451-452 Difficult Bible Questions 

said. A sincere fast, which while mortifying the flesh, 
aided in concentrating the mind upon the things of the 
Spirit, is especially adapted to certain great emer- 
gencies. Our Saviour himself set us the example. 

451. Should a Christian Marry a Non-Christian? 

Paul gives direct teaching on the subject. He says 
(II Cor. 6:14), "Be ye not unequally yoked together 
with unbelievers/' etc. In the case of the Corinthians, 
such a union must have been exceedingly uncongenial, 
as the unbeliever was usually an idolater. The disparity 
is not so marked in our day, but it is sufficient still to 
produce a lack of real harmony. Religion should be to 
the Christian the first and fundamental element of life. 
To have a partner who has no sympathy with it is to 
raise a barrier between the two which keeps them 
separate in the highest and holiest spheres of life. Gen- 
erally it leads to the Christian forsaking his faith. 

452. How Can the Unbelieving Husband Be 

Sanctified by the Believing Wife? 

This probably was never designed for general appli- 
cation. It was meant to meet very special conditions. 
Paul, in I Cor. 7:14, was writing to Christians newly 
won from a corrupt and debasing form of heathenism. 
The converts were disposed to separate from their 
pagan partners and they wrote for Paul's approval. 
He told them not to do so. If the pagan husband or 
wife chose to leave, there was to be no restraint. The 
Christian must not be the one to seek separation. 
Rather he should remain in conjugal relations in the 
hope of saving his pagan wife (see verse 16). His 
example and tender affection and Christian kindness 



Christian Living 453-454 

might win her to Christianity — might be the means of 
sanctifying her. So the believing wife might influence 
the pagan husband. Besides, there was the consideration 
of the children, who, if the believer remained, would be 
brought up under holy influences. 

453. Is It Possible to Be So Trained from Child- 

hood Up that a "New Birth" Is Unnec- 
essary ? 

We believe that Christ's statement, "Ye must be 
born again/' applies to every human being. The most 
carefully trained child needs it. It is true that there 
are many so good by nature and training, that they 
pass through the process almost unconsciously. They 
do not go through the sorrow and anxiety and distress 
that precede conversion in the case of people who have 
led openly wicked lives. They come to God as to a 
Father, and having learned to love him from their 
earliest years, they are changed imperceptibly into his 
image. But, none the less, the change takes place, and 
the child yields itself by a definite act to Christ as a 
Saviour. These are beautiful characters, and they have 
reason to thank God for giving them parents so good 
and wise. They are, however, very rare. The best 
trained child is often conscious of having lied, or 
committed other sins which need to be forgiven, and 
of having a nature that is prone to sin, which needs 
to be changed by the Holy Spirit. 

454. Who Is My Neighbor? 

The practical question, "How shall I carry out the 
commandment to love one's neighbor as one's self" is 
constantly facing the Christian. In the parable of the 



455 Difficult Bible Questions 

Good Samaritan, Jesus taught that our neighbor is any 
one to whom we can be of service. There are no limits 
as to social standing, or creed, or race, or habitation. 
Any one whom we can reach has a claim upon our help, 
which is sanctioned by God himself. The teachings of 
both Jesus and Paul are plain that a man should care, 
with special earnestness and affection, for the mem- 
bers of his own household. To be sweet and kind, 
patient and helpful at home is the first neighborly duty 
of the Christian. Then the people to whom one is 
nearest in his daily life have the next claim upon his 
service. He should be on the lookout for persons and 
families who are in need and whom he can help. The 
Christian should make his influence felt for the benefit 
of his neighborhood, his town, and his state. Mails 
and express routes have knit the whole world into so 
compact a neighborhood that every one must feel that 
the needy in any corner of the world have a claim upon 
his charitable consideration. Needless to say the joy 
of such service always far outweighs whatever sacrifice 
may be involved. Matt. 19:19, 22:39; Luke 10:36, 
37; Rom. 13:10. 

455. Why and How Should We Love Our Fel- 
low Man? 

God and Christ commanded us to love man. The 
Saviour gave us an example in doing it (I Jno. 4:7, 
21; Jno. 13:34; Jno. 15:12; I Jno. 3:23). It is taught 
by God and is a fruit of the Spirit (I Thes. 4:9; Gal. 
5:22; Col. 1:8). Without it, gifts and sacrifices are 
as nothing. Love is the great commandment (I Cor. 
13-1, 2, 3; Matt. 22:37-39; I Tim. 1:5). This love 
we should put on, follow after, abound and continue in, 



Christian Living 456 

and, while provoking each other to it, we should be 
sincere, disinterested and fervent in it (Col. 3:14; 
I Cor. 14:1; Phil. 1:9; I Thes. 3:12; I Tim. 2:15; II 
Cor. 8 7; Rom. 12 :g ; I Cor. 10 124 ; I Pet. 1:22). This 
virtue should be connected with brotherly kindness and 
should be practiced with a pure heart. We should 
show it toward saints, ministers, our families, our 
fellow countrymen, strangers, enemies; yes, to all 
men! (I Pet. 2:17; I Thess. 5:13; Eph. 5:25; Ex. 
32:32; Lev. 19:34; Ex. 23:4-5; Matt. 5:44; Rom. 
12:14, 20; Gal. 6:10), and demonstrate it by minister- 
ing to the wants of others, relieving strangers, visiting 
the sick, clothing the needy, sympathizing with and 
supporting the weak, covering the faults of others, for- 
giving, forbearing (Matt. 25:35; Gal. 5:13; Lev. 
25:35; Is. 58:7; Job 31:16; Jas. 1:27; Rom. 12:15; 
Gal. 6:2; Prov. 10:12; Eph. 4:32, 4:2). This love 
to man is evidence of our being in the light of our 
discipleship with Christ and of spiritual life (I Jno. 
2:10; Jno. 13:35; I Jno. 3:14). It is the fulfillment 
of the Law, is good and pleasant, is a bond of union 
and perfectness and necessary to true happiness (Rom. 
13:8-10; Ps. 133:1-2; Col. 2\2\ Col. 3:14; Prov. 
I5:i7). 

456. In What Sense Is Our "Overcoming" Like 
That of Jesus? 

There is more in the statement in Rev. 3 :2i than a 
comparison of our victories with those of Christ. It is 
rather a statement of similarity in the whole sequence 
of struggle, victory, and reward in the case of the 
Christian and of Christ. He struggled, triumphed, and 
was enthroned ; we, too, shall struggle, triumph, and be 



457 Difficult Bible Questions 

enthroned. This does not mean that at every step, or 
necessarily at any step, our experiences shall be identi- 
cal with his or equal to his. His struggles, his victories, 
and his rewards are greater than ours can be. Never- 
theless, we find it to be true, comparing this passage 
with others, that, whatever struggles we may meet, 
our victories may be as complete as his. (See I John 
2 :6, 4:17; II Cor. 2 :i4, etc.) And this is true because 
it is his very strength that is available for us in our 
times of need. 

457. What Should Be the Christian's Attitude 
toward Pleasures? 

Many Christians, especially among the young, are 
interested in knowing what pleasures are inconsistent 
with a Christian's life. What sacrifices in this respect 
does God ask us to make? God does not ask us to 
make sacrifices for its own sake. When he asks us to 
give anything up, it is because he knows it would be 
harmful to us to keep it. In all our thoughts about 
God we must hold with a firm grip the great fundamen- 
tal truth that he loves us. We cannot think rightly 
or feel comfortable without starting here. Because he 
loves us he wants us to be happy. He does not want 
to take away our happiness but to give us more. And 
he knows that we can be happy only as we love and 
serve him. He really asks us to give up nothing, except 
to give ourselves to him. When we realize that we 
belong to him we also realize that certain things harm 
us, and that certain other things may have a harmful 
influence upon others. We are living for him, and for 
the people for whom his Son died. All these questions 
settle themselves quite easily then. There are many 



Christian Living 458 

unobjectionable pleasures, but we should shun those 
that waste precious time ; that lead to evil companion- 
ships ; that involve acts and associations which interfere 
with our spiritual progress ; that are inimical to health 
or reputation, and also those that, by setting a bad 
example, may operate as a stumbling-block to others. 
In this way we will find more happiness in the con- 
sciousness that we are pleasing and helping him than 
w r e could ever have found in any form of self- 
indulgence. 

458. How May I Pray Acceptably to God? 

This is a question asked by many earnest people. 
This is the natural state of one in whom spiritual life 
has not yet been fully awakened. Prayer, like belief, 
is not an act that can easily be made clear to the unen- 
lightened. If you go to God as a child to its father, 
when you are in trouble, and ask him in simple faith to 
help you for Jesus' sake, you will be better able to 
understand why others believe in prayer and find it one 
of the principal mainstays of their lives. Seek the side 
of some aged Christian and put the question as to his 
belief in prayer, and you will immediately receive the 
answer that a large part of his life rests upon daily 
communion with God, and that very many of his peti- 
tions, presented in the name of Jesus, have been 
answered. There are tens of thousands of good Chris- 
tian people throughout this land who can testify to the 
efficacy of prayer. Very many of these believers make 
it a rule to honor God by acknowledging before the 
world the answers to their prayers. We would advise 
any one who doubts and who sincerely wishes to be 
helped, to drop all argument and apply the test to his 



459-460 Difficult Bible Questions 

own case, and then give God the glory before the 
brethren. We would not, however, advise any one to 
pray for mere material blessings, or worldly honors, or 
wealth or luxuries, but to pray in the right spirit and to 
study that he does not pray amiss. Every petition 
should be presented in Jesus' name. 

459. What Does Redemption Do for Us? 

"Ye are bought with a price," says Paul (I Cor. 
6:20, 7:23). This price is the blood of Christ and he 
was sent to effect our redemption with it (Acts 20:28; 
Gal. 4:4, 5). And what were we redeemed from? 
From the bondage and curse of the law, the power of 
sin and of the grave, from all troubles, iniquity, evil, 
enemies, death and destruction (Gal. 4:5, 3:13; Rom. 
6:18; Ps. 49:15, 25:22; Tit. 2:14; Gen. 48:16; Ps. 
106:10, 11; Hos. 13:14; Ps. 103:4). This redemption 
procures for us justification, forgiveness, purification 
and adoption through the precious, plenteous and eter- 
nal power and grace of God (Rom. 3:24; Eph. 1:7; 
Gal. 4:4, 5; Tit. 2:14). To those who partake of it 
there is opened up a new life and existence, for they 
are the property of God, a peculiar people, are first- 
fruits of God and are sealed unto the day of redemp- 
tion. They are zealous of good works, walk safely in 
holiness and shall return to Zion with joy (Is. 43:1; 
Rev. 14:4; II Sam. 7:23; Eph. 4:30; Eph. 2:10; Is. 
35 :8, 9; Is. 35 :io). This redemption man cannot effect, 
nor can corruptible things purchase it, but it is the free 
gift of God by Christ. 

460. What Is Regeneration? 

Regeneration is being born again, and is the work 
of the Holy Spirit, by which we experience a change of 



Christian Living 461-462 

heart. It is perhaps better expressed as being "born 
anew from above" (John 3:7), being "awakened" 
(Eph. 2:1), Christ coming into the heart (Gal. 4:19), 
"renewing of the mind" (Rom. 12:2), the "purifying" 
(Titus 3 15). Man is not the author of his own regen- 
eration. The change consists in the recovery of the 
moral image of God upon the heart, leading us to love 
him supremely and serve him as our highest end. It 
is wholly the work of the Holy Spirit. The change is 
in the heart and the will — in our moral and spiritual 
faculties; and the natural faculties, being dominated 
by the will, while they may resist for a time, ultimately 
follow the change. The evidences of regeneration are 
conviction of sin, sorrow and repentance, faith, love 
and devotion to God. In regeneration we receive from 
God, whereas in conversion we turn to God. 

461. Is Regeneration Different from the Baptism 

of the Holy Spirit? 

They are part of one process — the work of the Holy 
Spirit, Regeneration is the new birth by which we 
experience a change of heart, and it is the work of the 
Holy Spirit. Titus 3 15 speaks of "the washing of 
regeneration." We are made members of the visible 
Church of Christ by baptism and renewed in the Spirit 
by the Holy Ghost. The "higher baptism," or the 
bestowment of the Spirit upon faithful believers, often 
differs greatly in degree, but it is identical in character 
and is the universal privilege of all Christians. 

462. Is Remorse a Discipline? 

We should bear remorse until by God's grace a hap- 
pier state of mind is produced. You remember that 



463-464 Difficult Bible Questions 



significant record (Mark 14:72) about Peter's denial 
of Christ : " When he thought thereon he wept." When 
you rejoice over sin forgiven, and are overcome with 
wonder and gratitude at God's magnanimity in forgiv- 
ing you, it is quite natural and proper that you should 
grieve that you had ever offended a Being so good and 
kind. The forgiveness should lead you to love God 
more than others do, and to rejoice in his marvelous 
goodness and mercy. It should also lead you to be very 
watchful against relapsing into sin, and to make great 
•exertions to render service to One who has forgiven 
you. You should also be very tender and charitable 
toward others. Do not let remorse incapacitate you 
for labor, but rather operate as an incentive to service. 

463. Where Is Restitution Taught? 

See Matt. 5:26; Luke 16:1012; Luke 19:8, 9; Rom. 
13 :8; Philemon 18. The Roman law (in Christ's day) 
directed a fourfold restitution, which explains Zac- 
cheus' statement in Luke 19:8. His generous addition 
of "the half of his goods," though not demanded by 
the law, was evidently heard with approval of the spirit 
which prompted it. Moralists hold that we are bound 
to restore the thing owed, in kind, if possible, with the 
natural increase added. This seems to have been the 
view adopted by the early Christian Church. 

464. Is It Right for a Christian to Retaliate? 

A Christian should never retaliate; nor should he 
suffer himself to be imposed upon, when possible to 
avoid it. Between retaliation and the suffering of im- 
position, he should, however, accept the latter, if re- 
taliation implies his committing any act of vindictive- 



Christian Living 465 

ness unbecoming a Christian. Our Lord's words upon 
the subject are plain. Read the fifth and eighteenth 
chapters of Matthew. St. Paul says repeatedly, "Love 
is the fulfilling of the law." Retaliation is contrary to 
the spirit and letter of this. But while we are told to 
love our neighbor as ourself, we are not told to love 
him better; and self-protection, in a wise and proper 
spirit, is a duty. 

465. Should the Christian Work for Reward? 

The New Testament makes it very clear that the 
motive of our work should be love for Christ, love that 
springs from gratitude for his salvation. But the 
Christian is also reminded of the great rewards that 
shall come to him in the future life if he is faithful and 
if his work is of a high order. Study particularly I 
Cor. 3:11-15. The thought of these rewards helps us 
to be faithful, constant, and careful. The conception of 
what the rewards will be varies with different stages of 
civilization. The best idea of these rewards seems to 
be that every good deed done is in itself the reward. 
Somebody, was helped, was saved, was made glad, 
was given power and inspiration for helping others; 
these facts are eternal, and w r ill bless forever those 
who are responsible for them, Then, too, the reward 
implies power to do still greater things. If there is 
joy in accomplishing things for the Master now there 
wall be greater joy when we find ourselves furnished 
with the new, heavenly powers for doing still greater 
service. But more and more the Christian should train 
himself to keep his eyes and his heart fixed on Christ, 
eager to please him. He has called us into his friend- 

21 



466-467 Difficult Bible Questions 

ship, into his fellowship, into co-operation with him in 
his great tasks. We must not disappoint him. 

466. Is a Saved Person Sure of His Salvation? 

Many good men of whose salvation there can be no 
question, have at times had doubts, and have suffered 
acute distress. In some cases the doubts have a physi- 
cal origin resulting from a gloomy disposition. In 
others, they arise from too much introspection. In 
others again, because their conscience reminds them of 
sins not yet overcome. You must remember that you 
are not saved because of your feelings, but because 
Christ died for you. If you have sincerely repented, 
and are trusting entirely in Christ to save you, and are 
living in his strength a godly life, you have the right 
to thank God for saving you, in spite of your doubts. 
If you cannot take his word that those who come to 
him through Christ have eternal life, you should ask 
him to forgive you for doubting him. You may be 
quite sure that he will keep his promise, whether you 
have the joy of assurance or not. 

467. What Is the Christian's Duty as to Sab- 

bath Observance? 

Paul gave this advice to people who were troubled 
by legalists in his day: "Let no man judge you in 
meat or in drink or in respect of . . . the Sabbath 
days" (Col. 2:16). In every generation since Christ 
and before his time, there were people who laid more 
stress on days and forms and ceremonies than on es- 
sentials. The Pharisees found it much easier to give 
tithes of their kitchen-gardens than to do justly and 
refrain from robbing widows and orphans. You as a 



Christian Living 468 

Christian are not under the law at all. When Gentiles 
were first admitted to the Church it was expressly 
declared that they were not required to observe the 
Jewish code of laws. The question came up at a 
solemn council at which the Apostles were present and 
was decided once for all. You will find the result of 
the discussion in Acts 15. In the name of the Holy 
Spirit the decision was given as stated in verses 28 and 
29, and it was expressly stated that no other burden 
was laid upon them. They naturally and properly 
celebrated the day on which Christ rose from the dead, 
not the Jewish Sabbath, with which they had nothing 
to do, and we follow their example. 

468. What Is the True Theory as to Sunday 
Observance ? 

The Sabbath was divinely ordained as a day of cessa- 
tion from labor. In the Jewish Church, the restrictions 
were most rigid and profanation of the day was severe- 
ly punished. It was a day of rest, reconciliation, wor- 
ship and religious festivity. (See Is. 58:13, 14.) Chris- 
tian Sabbath observance recognizes the same general 
obligation to abstain from regular vocations and to 
devote the day largely to rest and worship. Jesus him- 
self rebuked the slavish Sabbatic restrictions of the 
Scribes and Pharisees, and showed them that the Sab- 
bath was made for man, meaning that it was designed 
and instituted for our common humanity, and to con- 
duce to our highest good. He pointed out that there 
were various acts which in themselves were not sinful, 
but meritorious, and such as might be done on the 
Sabbath. These were the works of necessity or of 
mercy. This is the attitude of the Christian Church 



469-470 Difficult Bible Questions 

of today on Sabbath observance (Col. 2:16). It may 
be briefly said that no labor should be performed on 
that day which can be done on secular days, and that 
works of charity and mercy are justified on that day. 
We have the divine example for abstention in Gen. 
2 :2, 3. 

469. Is It 1 ossible to Get Beyond God's Will- 

ingness and Power to Save? 

There is none who can go beyond the reach of the 
Divine mercy. Jesus saves "to the uttermost'' (Heb. 
7:25). God will always hear and answer the prayer of 
the earnest, penitent heart. Christ's offering of himself 
was once for all who accept him ; and his intercession, 
which is continuous, assures us that we cannot be 
separated from his love if we take him into our hearts 
and lives. 

470. What Is the Way of Salvation? 

It would probably disappoint if we answered in the 
Scriptural way: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ 
and thou shalt be saved." Yet that is the only true 
answer. Stripped of theological phraseology, the way 
of salvation may be described as committing your case 
to Christ, much as you would commit your case to a 
physician if you were sick, or your trouble to a lawyer 
if you were in danger of imprisonment. "Believing on 
him" is the complete trust you place in him and the 
profound conviction that he can and will save you. 
This is the decisive thing, the turning point. That 
done, several results flow from it. One is sorrow for 
sin previously committed and a renunciation of it for 
the future. A second is the endeavor, in the strength 



Christian Living 471 

that Christ imparts, to follow his example, to cultivate 
his spirit, and to live his life of purity, holiness and 
helpfulness. This involves prayer and submission to 
his will in all things. Then you should join a church 
to confess him openly. There are other matters that 
will call for your attention as you go on, but these we 
have mentioned are the plain, simple duties that you 
have to do in order to become a Christian. 

471. How, if God Worketh in Us, Must We 
Work Out Our Own Salvation? 

There is no contradiction in the passage Phil. 2 :i2, 
19. It is very true that we must work out our own 
salvation; and it is equally true that it is God who 
worketh in us. A certain part is ours to do, which God 
cannot do for us ; another part is God's to do which we 
cannot do for him. In the first place we must do the 
believing. Mr. Moody used to tell how he prayed for 
faith until he noticed the passage : "Faith cometh by 
hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." Rom. 
10:17. God has given the Word; we must do the 
believing. Again, God gives us the power, but we 
must use it. God may give his Spirit to enable a 
Christian to testify or to preach, but the Christian 
must use his lips and tongue and voice. God dwells 
in us and works in us and we have his power ; but by 
using his power and accepting his help we increase our 
capacity for more, we gain mental, spiritual and physi- 
cal strength and skill for our work. Our bodily life 
bears a perfect analogy to the spiritual life in this 
respect; God starts our hearts beating and keeps be- 
stowing the gift of life. In this sense he dwells and 
works in us. But we must work and exercise that we 



472 Difficult Bible Questions 

may grow stronger and more efficient and accomplish 
the work we find to do. 

472. How Are We to Accept Christ as Saviour? 

Though salvation by faith is such a simple thing, 
many souls stumble at it. It seems too simple to be 
true, so they go about trying to find a harder way to be 
saved, and of course they do not find it because there 
is no other way. This is what we should say to every 
seeking soul : The first step toward Christ is to realize 
what it is that keeps you away from him, that is, your 
sin. Christ is very near you, nearer than your closest 
friend ; but your sin separates your soul from him. You 
must confess your sin, acknowledge that you have 
sinned; you must repent of your sin, making restitu- 
tion if you have wronged any one ; you must determine 
to forsake your sin. But these things are not faith; 
they are only the necessary steps to faith. Faith is the 
definite belief that Christ died for your sins and that he 
actually forgives them now. "He tasted death for 
every man." If that is so, then he really, literally died 
for you. It is very easy to believe Jesus if you will ; st 
let yourself do it. Faith is an extremely simple thing ; 
doubt is difficult. In your brain you know that he 
died "for every man." How can you doubt, then, that 
he died for you? You know that he died for the sins 
of the whole world; this must include you. Nothing 
in the history of the world is a surer, steadier fact than 
that Christ was crucified to save you from sin. The 
moment any one will stop doubting that fact and begin 
to believe it he will find peace, and find Christ. "Be 
not afraid — only believe." "Believe in the Lord Jesus 
Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Have you not proved 



Christian Living 473-474 

that the way of doubt is hard and sad? Will you not 
try now the way of trust, and find how sweet and light 
and glad it is? 

473. How Is the Distinction to Be Made Be- 

tween the False Shepherd and the True ? 

The test that Christ gave (Matt. 24:24) whereby we 
may know the false prophets, and the true as well, is 
practical for every age. "By their fruits ye shall know 
them." The Scriptures specify the characteristics of 
the "false shepherd" in part as follows : They serve 
only themselves, mind earthly things, feign piety and 
sanctity, fear persecution, respecters of persons, deceit- 
ful workers, prophesy false peace, wrest the Scriptures, 
deny the Lord that bought them, preferring questions 
of vain philosophy to truths of Scripture, etc. The 
"true shepherd" preaches the Word that is able to 
save and build up ; he watches for souls, seeks the wan- 
dering, reclaims in love those repelled by uncharitable- 
ness, is willing to make personal sacrifice, sympathetic, 
faithful in warning and reproving, tender in treatment 
of young and burdened Christians, persevering if by 
any means he may save souls. Thus it is grace, pro- 
ducing character, and not talents, that distinguishes 
the true from the false. 

474. Does God Allow Satan to Punish Us with 

Sickness ? 

Do not make the mistake that Job's friends made, 
of assuming that sickness, trouble, or bereavement 
may necessarily be punishment. You will find a dif- 
ferent theory, not in John only, but in Hebrews. The 
writer of that epistle says (12:5-11) that chastisement 
is sometimes to be regarded as a proof of God's love. 



475 Difficult Bible Questions 

He evidently regarded it as being inflicted by God, 
but to be li the nature of discipline and education 
rather than ptu?ishn ent. On the other hand, Paul said 
his "thorn in the fles v ' was the messenger of Satan 
(II Cor. 12:7). It does not make much difference to 
the sufferer whether God Inflicts or permits Satan or 
men to inflict. In either case the affliction must be 
endured, and if it is borne with patience and equa- 
nimity, God is pleased, because then the world sees 
how his children love and honor him. The statement 
often made that all sickness and affliction are sent as 
a punishment is not true, but on the contrary, is a 
hideous libel on God and a cruel outrage on the suf- 
ferers. Sickness is sometimes a punishment for dis- 
regarding the laws of nature, but it is not God's 
punishment for sin. The book of Job was written to 
show how false and cowardly was the theory that 
those worst afflicted were the worst sinners. Job in- 
sisted and God confirmed him, that we have no right to 
infer that the afflicted man has been a heinous sinner. 
Christ also indignantly repudiated the idea (see Luke 
13:2-4, and again John 9:1-3). Sickness often comes 
as a discipline to develop spirituality, to lead to greater 
faith and patience and sometimes to give an example 
of Christ's sustaining power. People have often won- 
dered at the patience and endurance of the afflicted 
Christian and have gained from the spectacle a deep 
impression of the power of religion. 

475. "Does Falling into Sin Prove that Con- 
version Has Not Yet Taken Place?" 

That is not a reliable test. Unhappily, even con- 
verted men fall into sin at times. There is, however, 



Christian Living 476 

this difference, that before conversion, sin occasions 
little if any sorrow, whereas after conversion it is 
sincerely mourned and deplored and God's help is 
sought not only for pardon, but for strength to avoid 
it in the future. There are many signs of conversion. 
One is that just stated in the soul's attitude toward sin. 
Another is love for Christ, through whom all blessings 
come. There is, too, an intense desire to know him and 
be like him and a complete dependence on him, and a 
resolve that if his will is recognized it shall be obeyed 
at any cost. There is also a change of feeling toward 
others, especially toward all who also love Christ. The 
soul that has been born again is full of love to men and 
women and there is a desire to render them service. 
These are among the most conspicuous signs of con- 
version, but they are not always all present at the 
beginning of the Christian life, but develop later. 

476. If Past Sins Harass the Mind Is It Ev- 
idence that God Has Not Forgiven Them? 

No, it is sometimes an evidence of lack of faith. 
But generally it arises from a very proper sense of the 
heinous nature of our sin. Though God forgives, and 
we rejoice in the fact and adore him for his marvellous 
magnanimity, we cannot forgive ourselves. There is 
a very touching expression in Mark 14:72 which inti- 
mates that Peter's memory of his denial of Christ w r as 
life-long: "When he thought thereon, he wept." The 
other Evangelists speak of his weeping at the time, but 
Mark, who probably knew him well in his later years, 
phrases it differently. Yet, though Peter may have 
continued to weep at the thought, he could never have 
had any doubt as to his being forgiven. 



477-478 Difficult Bible Questions 

477. Are We Punished for Sins While Yet Here 

on Earth? 

It might be difficult to prove that there is direct 
punishment, but experience proves that the results of 
sin are often very bitter and painful. Sometimes 
they are felt in the body, when the sins of youth bring 
on disease which lasts all through life. They are often 
seen in the eases of Christians who set a bad example 
before their conversion, and they grieve when they see 
young people, whom they led into evil, grow worse and 
worse. The results of the sin of neglecting the training 
of children are frequently very sorrowful. The child 
grows up and falls into sin, and then the parent suffers 
remorse, as he feels that if he had only done his duty 
before it was too late, the child might have been saved. 
In many other ways, by natural law, sin works its own 
punishment. 

478. Does Willful Sin Exclude One from Par- 

don? 

No; we firmly believe that there is no passage that 
excludes him from pardon. The writer of the Epistle 
to the Hebrews (who, by the way, was probably not 
Paul), simply taught that there was no further sacrifice 
for sin than that which had been offered in the person 
of Christ. (See Heb. 10:26.) He was writing to 
Hebrews, who, under the old dispensation, could bring 
another sin-offering when they sinned again. The 
Christian must revert to the cross, for there remained 
no other atonement, and if he put that away from 
him, he was without resource. The backslider who 
sincerely repents is encouraged to return and is sure 
of welcome. It is the one imperative duty he is bound 



Christian Living 479 

to perform. Peter, who denied his Lord, was tenderly 
welcomed. The wicked member mentioned in I Corin- 
thians, you will see if you look to the second epistle 
(2 :7), was to be forgiven and comforted. As a father 
receives a beloved child, who goes to him with con- 
fession and repentance, so God will receive the Chris- 
tian who has fallen, but has renounced his sin and 
humbly pleads for forgiveness through Christ. 

479. How Does Religion Help One to Get Over 
a Besetting Sin? 

There is first the direct power which God promises 
to give through Christ to those who sincerely and 
earnestly seek it. Then, there is the subjective power 
that comes from a soul turning decisively to God. This 
Chalmers called "The expulsive power of a new affec- 
tion." It is an over-mastering impulse which leaves 
no room in the mind for the old enemy. When a man 
falls again under the power of the sin, he need not 
conclude that God has not given him the aid. He has 
more reason to think that the aid was given, but not 
used. Man must work with God in such a case and 
must not expect to be delivered without striving, but 
to be delivered through striving in the new strength 
that God gives him. But above all there must be firm 
belief in Christ and his redeeming love. A mere intel- 
lectual belief is not sufficient. As James remarks, "The 
devils believe." Belief in the sense of trusting, confid- 
ing, is required. It is the kind of belief that a patient 
has in his physician when, in a critical illness, he 
trusts his life to a physician and calls in no other. Or, 
as when a man charged with murder puts all his re- 
liance on his lawyer and believes in his power to secure 



480-481 Difficult Bible Questions 

his acquittal. Or it is the belief of an outlaw who trusts 
to a ruler who has issued a proclamation of amnesty. 
The man who puts himself in Christ's hands for salva- 
tion will try to resist all evil and will obey Christ's 
commands and will seek from Christ the help he stands 
ready to give to enable him to lead a holy life. 

480. Are the Regenerate Sinless? 

In the regenerate, the higher nature, as begotten of 
God, does not commit sin (I John 3:9). This principle 
within him is at absolute variance with sin and makes 
him hate all sin and desire to resist it. Luther, referring 
to this condition, wrote : "The child of God receives 
wounds daily and never throws away his arms, or 
makes peace with his deadly foe." His life is a continual 
warfare against sin, but he is kept by divine power 
from falling, although if he even momentarily permit 
his spiritual weapons to lie idle, he will feel the sharp 
attacks of sin. The ruling principle of his life is God's 
law, but the old nature may sometimes rebel. The 
passage from Hebrews 2,7 does not conflict with this. 
The passage in Hebrews 6 was written to urge ad- 
vancement in the spiritual life and to warn them that the 
decline of spiritual energies would inevitably lead to a 
"falling away" and perhaps to ultimate apostasy. The 
warning was addressed not to the elect but to the luke- 
warm, who had shown a temporary faith, only to be 
followed by indifference. 

481. Are Children Punished for Parents' Sin? 

There is in the minds of many a misunderstanding of 
Scripture on this point. (Ex. 20:5.) Good authorities 
hold that it does not mean that God punishes a man 



Christian Living 482 

for the wrongdoing of his parents, but that he is pun- 
ished by the acts of the parents themselves. It is 
inevitable that we should be affected by what our par- 
ents have done. We enjoy the privileges of our free 
country because these privileges were won by our fore- 
fathers; we have freedom of worship because they 
fought and suffered and died to secure it. Having re- 
ceived good, do not we inherit evil the same way? 
The children of a spendthrift must lack the good start 
in life that they might have had; the son of a father 
who has disgraced his name is under a reproach. That 
the character, habits and wickedness of an evil parent 
must influence his progeny is generally admitted. Nat- 
ural laws cannot be escaped, and the characteristics of 
a progenitor may be traced sometimes through several 
generations. The children who were born in Babylon, 
suffered in exile because their fathers had deserted 
God. It is a law of the natural life that the results 
that flow from a parent's wrongdoing are entailed on 
his children ; but the children are not held morally ac- 
countable for the sins of their parents. 

482. Is Sinlessness Possible? 

It frequently happens that confusion arises concern- 
ing the apparent conflict of statements in the passages 
in I John 1 :8 and 3 :g. In the first of these, every one 
is represented as sinning, and in the latter it is clearly 
stated that "Whoso is born of God cannot sin." To 
suppose that none who sin are begotten of God would 
exclude every one, as John himself admits in the first 
passage we quote. One explanation is that the writer 
is speaking of the divine nature implanted in the be- 
liever. It never commits or condones sin, but always 



483-484 Difficult Bible Questions 

protests against it. A second explanation is that the 
man who is begotten of God does not continue in sin. 
If betrayed by his fleshly nature into sin, he repents, 
seeks pardon, and watches against a repetition of it. 
However high the Christian may set his ideal as a fol- 
lower of Christ, he realizes, after all, that his efforts are 
sadly short of the Great Exemplar and that his imper- 
fections are beyond dispute. At the same time, he can 
be said truly to be no longer under the bondage of 
sin, since, having laid his burden on the Great Burden- 
Bearer, sin is no longer imputed to him. 

483. Is Every Sin Willful and Thus Every Back- 

slider Doomed? 

The subject is discussed in Heb. 6 :4, 5, 6, and Heb. 
10:26, 27. In one sense every sin is willful, because 
the sinner would not do it without the consent of his 
will ; but the word has another meaning. It implies a 
deliberate and intentional act, which is different from 
an act to which a man is lured or deceived, or an act 
which he commits under some sudden and strong temp- 
tation. There was, for example, a marked difference 
between the sin of Judas and of Peter. The Apostle 
Paul, too, bade the church at Corinth restore the 
wrongdoer who had been expelled (II Cor. 2:6-8). Be 
sure of this, that any backslider repenting and turning 
to God for pardon, resolutely putting his sin away, 
will be welcomed and forgiven (See Ezek. 33:14-16, 
and many other passages). 

484. Are All Sins Pardonable? 

Divine mercy extends to the uttermost. The invita- 
tion is that "whosoever will may come." The "un- 



Christian Living 485 

pardonable sin," which was frequently spoken of in the 
early clays of the Church, is believed to have been at- 
tributing the works of the Holy Spirit to the powers of 
darkness. With this exception, there is nothing in the 
category of human offenses that is beyond the reach of 
divine forgiveness. "Although your sins be like scar- 
let, they shall be white as snow," is the ancient prom- 
ise given by God to men ; "though they be like crimson, 
they shall be as wool." This is not to be interpreted, 
however, as an encouragement to sin, but rather as an 
inducement to repentance. If the sinner truly repents, 
imploring God's forgiveness for Jesus' sake; if he 
accepts him as Saviour and endeavors, with divine 
help, to live thereafter a Christian life, he will not 
only be forgiven, but will be kept from falling back 
into sin. This is the teaching of the Gospel, and it 
is exemplified in innumerable cases today. We have 
many instances everywhere of great sinners who have 
forsaken their evil ways and who are now living the 
new life, sustained by divine power. 

"There's a wideness in God's mercy 
Like the wideness of the sea." 

We have the Saviour's distinct assurance, "Him that 
cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out." There is 
no punishment for sins that are forgiven. "Jesus paid 
it all." 

485. Is the Unpardonable Sin Possible Today? 

In ancient times, it was generally held that the un- 
pardonable sin (Matt. 12:32) was attributing the 
works of the Holy Spirit to Satanic agency. If there 
be a modern counterpart of the unpardonable sin, we 



486 Difficult Bible Questions 

should think it is to be found in the case of the person 
who uses the livery of God to- serve the devil in; who 
enacts the role of the shepherd of the sheep, while he 
is nothing but a ravening wolf in disguise; who as- 
sumes the attitude, language and demeanor of a saint 
while his exterior covers a heart black with sin and 
foul with guilt ; who brings to the altar of God's house 
hands that are stained with crime, and who keeps up 
this show of religion and utters the language of Chris- 
tian invitation while he himself is not a Christian. It 
is a terrible picture and one which is almost unimagin- 
able in the case of any sane and responsible person. 

486. Is It Sinful to Do What One Considers 
Wrong although There Is No Wrong 
About It? 

That is Paul's teaching, as he particularly outlines 
and emphasizes it in Rom. 14; I Cor. 8 and I Cor. 
10 123-33. He said himself that he did not consider it 
wrong to eat meat which might have been offered to 
idols (I Cor. 8:4, 8; I Cor. 10:25, 27), but that if he 
knew of any one who might be offended by his doing 
so he would eat no meat at all (I Cor. 8 113). In Rom. 
14 :20 he says : "All things indeed are pure, but it is 
evil for that man who eateth with offense" — that is, 
for the man who eats, even though it troubles his con- 
science. The same thought is in Rom. 14 123 : "What- 
soever is not of faith is sin." But our reason bears 
out this New Testament teaching; we know that it is 
wrong for a man to do something which he believes to 
be wrong. The whole spirit of the New Testament is 
away from legalism and toward a spontaneous, affec- 
tionate eagerness to please God and serve our neighbor. 



Christian Living 487-488 

Where no command or prohibition is specified, each 
Christian is left free to follow his own enlightened 
conscience. To violate this is sin. 

487. Is It Natural or Unnatural to Sin? 

Judging by the prevalence of sin and the early age 
at which children usually begin, we should say it was 
natural. David seemed to have that opinion (see Ps. 
51 :5). It was not much better before the fall. Adam 
and Eve do not appear, according to the account in 
Genesis, to have made much resistance to temptation. 
The fact of its being natural accounts for a new nature 
being necessary, as Christ explained to Nicodemus 
(John 3:1-21). 

488. How May We Win Souls? 

"How can I win souls" is a frequent question from 
beginners in Christian life. They remember the injunc- 
tion: "He that winneth souls is wise." (Prov. 11 130. ) 
The first impulse which comes to the newborn soul in 
Christ is to tell some one else of the glad experience 
and to bring some one else to the Saviour. The first 
requisite for the work of soul-winning is to have a 
definite experience which makes its possessor long to 
have others share it. The most important element of 
soul-winning is simple testimony to the grace of God. 
There must be consistent and careful living, for it is 
difficult or impossible to win others to Christ when 
one's own life does not exemplify the teachings of the 
Master. The Bible must be mastered by one who 
would be a successful soul-winner. He must have in 
his mind, or be able to reach quickly, passages which 
will meet the difficulties of those whom he tries to win. 

22 



489 Difficult Bible Questions 

There must be also a sympathetic study of human 
nature. The soul-winner must understand the work- 
ings and problems of the hearts and minds he tries to 
reach. Then, there must be continued activity. Mr. 
Moody made it a rule to speak definitely to at least 
one person -about his soul's welfare every day. Above 
all, the power of the Holy Spirit must be sought and 
found to give wisdom and power, by which alone real 
success in soul-winning is to be found. 

489. Is a Christian Justified in Suing to Re- 
cover a Loan? 

It depends upon circumstances. If his debtor is 
able but refuses to pay, there is nothing in Christ's 
meaning to prevent the Christian from appealing to 
law to recover what is justly his, after all peaceable 
means have failed. The Revised Version of Luke 
6:35 reads, "Lend, never despairing" (margin, "de- 
spairing of no man"). We are to be kind to those of 
whom we can expect no return in sort. God will repay 
us, though man does not. "It is meant of the rich lend- 
ing to the poor a little money for their necessity to buy 
daily bread or to keep them out of prison; in such a 
case we must lend with the resolution not to demand 
interest for what we lend, as we may most justly from 
those that borrow money to make purchases withal or 
to trade with ; but that is not all, we must lend though 
we have reason to suspect that what we lend we lose ; 
lend to those who are so poor that it is not probable 
they will be able to pay us again. This precept will 
be best illustrated by that law of Moses (Deu. 15 7-10) 
which obliges them to lend to a poor brother as much 
as he needed, though the year of release was at hand." 



Christian Living 490-491 

This is an old commentator's explanation, but it is good 
and true. 

490. Does Temptation Come from God? 

Human nature is weak and temptations to wrong- 
doing are abundant. Occasionally we hear, at a church 
meeting, or elsewhere, some dissatisfied soul complain- 
ing that he has been tempted and he is disposed to lay 
the blame for his condition on the Heavenly Father. 
Now T , God does not tempt any one. He permits us to 
be placed in positions where, if left to our own re- 
sources, we would fail; but he does not tempt us to 
evil, and if we call for his aid, we will assuredly re- 
ceive it. It is the evil spirit within us and the evil 
influences about us that bring us into temptation. In 
I Cor. 10:13 and James 1 :i3 it is explicitly stated that 
while God may permit us to be tested, he is not the 
tempter, and that he "tempts no man." The with- 
drawal of the Holy Spirit exposes us to temptations 
by leaving the heart open to the attack of the tempter ; 
but nothing is more erroneous than to assume that 
temptation, or the placing of any agent in man's spirit- 
ual path which may cause him to fall, comes from God. 

491. Is It a Sin to Be Tempted? 

We are not responsible for our temptations, but for 
yielding to and encouraging them. The sin consists in 
asquiescence. Christ himself was tempted. God tempts 
no man, but the evil spirit in our own hearts tempts 
us. If you will ask God, in Christ's name, to free you 
from these temptations and to purify your mind and 
heart, the temptations will have no power over you. 
They will come again and again, but will retire baffled 



492 



Difficult Bible Questions 



and defeated. It is the only way. Christ's prayer 
(taught to his disciples), is better interpreted: "Aban- 
don us not in temptation" (the power of the tempter), 
and not "remove us from temptation." It is a part of 
our earthly discipline. 

492. What Are Tithes? 

The question of tithing has been frequently dis- 
cussed and is ever a fruitful one. A tithe is a tenth of 
the increase over and above all administrative expenses 
and not a tenth of the principal. In early days, when 
agriculture was the almost universal calling, it was 
generally a tenth part of the produce of the land or 
the flocks. Later it became a tenth of the profits of 
personal industry of any character. (See Deu. 14:22, 
28, 16:12; II Chron. 31:5, etc.) There is evidence, 
however, that at certain times it may have meant a 
tenth of one's entire possessions. The modern inter- 
pretation would limit it to a tenth of the increase. 
There are many good people who still hold that a tenth 
of one's income should be set aside for the Lord's 
work. Under the ancient Jewish economy, tithing was 
regulated by a code of laws which were amplified and 
made still more complex by the rabbins; but under 
Christianity, the supreme law of love has been sub- 
stituted and is applicable to the tithing problem quite 
as well as to others. We are to give according as God 
has "prospered us," and from a generous and loving 
heart. One who wishes to tithe his estate should reck- 
on on the increase in value, or number, or whatever 
form his available assets may assume, excluding of 
course the necessary expenses of conducting his busi- 
ness. As to household expenses, these are elastic, and 



Christian Living 492 

one's domestic and personal expenditures are liable 
to increase with every augmentation of income, such 
increase frequently being one of extravagance rather 
than of necessity. It is quite conceivable that the 
whole income might be thus swallowed up. But if we 
act conscientiously, we will not "rob God" by multi- 
plying our expenditures until nothing is left for his 
work. "The liberal soul shall be made fat," and this 
especially applies to the character of our gifts to God's 
work. While we are not to devote to that work money 
which we may rightfully owe to our creditors, we can 
exercise self-denial in many things, so that our titha- 
ble "increase" (or, if no increase, then our surplus 
over and above all proper expenses) may be such as 
to assure a liberal gift to the cause of religion. 

God is a creditor, too. A very large per cent, of the 
people of the United States are in debt. Surely, it 
would not be right for them to stop all payments to the 
church and to charity till they are out of debt. While 
they and their families are getting the benefits of the 
church they ought to pay their church dues just as 
they pay their taxes and their rent. Your creditors 
w r ould not expect you to neglect to pay for the food 
which your body needs ; they should not expect you to 
neglect to pay for your soul food. Remember, however, 
that a tithe is required not on the gross earnings or 
income, but on the "increase." Certain fixed charges 
may be deducted before the earnings are tithed. What 
items are to be included in this deduction, as well as 
all tithing, must be left to the enlightened conscience. 

When Jesus stood by the treasury, he called attention 
to the fact that while the rich had cast in gifts of their 
superfluity, the poor widow had done better than they, 



492 



Difficult Bible Questions 



and defeated. It is the only way. Christ's prayer 
(taught to his disciples), is better interpreted: "Aban- 
don us not in temptation" (the power of the tempter), 
and not "remove us from temptation. ,, It is a part of 
our earthly discipline. 

492. What Are Tithes? 

The question of tithing has been frequently dis- 
cussed and is ever a fruitful one. A tithe is a tenth of 
the increase over and above all administrative expenses 
and not a tenth of the principal. In early days, when 
agriculture was the almost universal calling, it was 
generally a tenth part of the produce of the land or 
the flocks. Later it became a tenth of the profits of 
personal industry of any character. (See Deu. 14:22, 
28, 16:12; II Chron. 31:5, etc.) There is evidence, 
however, that at certain times it may have meant a 
tenth of one's entire possessions. The modern inter- 
pretation would limit it to a tenth of the increase. 
There are many good people who still hold that a tenth 
of one's income should be set aside for the Lord's 
work. Under the ancient Jewish economy, tithing was 
regulated by a code of laws which were amplified and 
made still more complex by the rabbins; but under 
Christianity, the supreme law of love has been sub- 
stituted and is applicable to the tithing problem quite 
as well as to others. We are to give according as God 
has "prospered us," and from a generous and loving 
heart. One who wishes to tithe his estate should reck- 
on on the increase in value, or number, or whatever 
form his available assets may assume, excluding of 
course the necessary expenses of conducting his busi- 
ness. As to household expenses, these are elastic, and 



Christian Living 492 

one's domestic and personal expenditures are liable 
to increase with every augmentation of income, such 
increase frequently being one of extravagance rather 
than of necessity. It is quite conceivable that the 
whole income might be thus swallowed up. But if we 
act conscientiously, we will not "rob God" by multi- 
plying our expenditures until nothing is left for his 
work. "The liberal soul shall be made fat," and this 
especially applies to the character of our gifts to God's 
work. While we are not to devote to that work money 
which we may rightfully owe to our creditors, we can 
exercise self-denial in many things, so that our titha- 
ble "increase" (or, if no increase, then our surplus 
over and above all proper expenses) may be such as 
to assure a liberal gift to the cause of religion. 

God is a creditor, too. A very large per cent, of the 
people of the United States are in debt. Surely, it 
would not be right for them to stop all payments to the 
church and to charity till they are out of debt. While 
they and their families are getting the benefits of the 
church they ought to pay their church dues just as 
they pay their taxes and their rent. Your creditors 
would not expect you to neglect to pay for the food 
which your body needs ; they should not expect you to 
neglect to pay for your soul food. Remember, however, 
that a tithe is required not on the gross earnings or 
income, but on the "increase." Certain fixed charges 
may be deducted before the earnings are tithed. What 
items are to be included in this deduction, as well as 
all tithing, must be left to the enlightened conscience. 

When Jesus stood by the treasury, he called attention 
to the fact that while the rich had cast in gifts of their 
superfluity, the poor widow had done better than they, 



492 Difficult Bible Questions 

for she had cast in "all her living" as a love offering, 
and it was an acceptable one. If we are to lavish all 
our prosperity on ourselves and our families, leaving 
nothing for the Lord's work, may we not be "robbing 
God"? Practically all of the difficulties involved in 
the problem would be solved if we followed the method 
of many Christians, who have been rich both in pros- 
perity and good works. They gave freely from the 
increase of their wealth which remained after absolute- 
ly necessary business expenses were covered, making 
the Lord a partner in all that remained. They did not 
ask themselves how much they need give to meet the 
requirements, but rather how fully and generously and 
gratefully they could show their love in making their 
gift for Jesus' sake. An offering we do not feel, and 
which is simply of our surplus, is a gift of compara- 
tively little worth, no matter how large the sum, while 
one that involves self-denial and even sacrifice, given 
with a cheerful heart, is rewarded with blessing. Still, 
the spirit in which we give is what counts. We should 
not plan so that our gifts to God return to ourselves or 
inure to our material benefit. Whatever is given to 
the Lord's work, whether administered personally with 
our own hands or through the church or its subsidiary 
organizations, or through any other channel, should be 
put wholly away from us so that we cannot derive any 
material benefit from the outlay. It is not giving to 
the Lord at all, if we attach a string to the gift. 

Kindness and humanity, the voluntary outpourings 
of a generous heart, are always pleasing in God's sight. 
Zaccheus was commended by Jesus no less for his 
liberality in giving half his goods to the poor than for 
his justice and integrity. His abounding charity cov- 



Christian Living 493-494 

ered many shortcomings, and his obedience to law and 
his firm hold on Abraham's faith as evidenced by works 
were both appreciated; but it was his faith in Christ 
as Lord that led to his salvation (see Luke 19:9, 10). 
Even with the utmost liberality, we cannot buy heaven ; 
yet no kind act, no generous gift, is unrewarded. We 
should give as freely as our hearts prompt and our cir- 
cumstances permit. All wealth is a trust to be used for 
the highest purposes, and our use of our means and 
influence here will unquestionably have its effect in 
determining our reward hereafter. 

493. In What Sense Are We to Understand 

Scriptural "Inspiration" ? 

In II Tim. 3 :i6 the statement is clear that the Scrip- 
ture is given by divine inspiration — that the percep- 
tions and work of the writers were divinely influenced. 
The Holy Spirit filled the hearts of those men with a 
message and led them to write that message for the 
world. This is what inspiration means. The inspired 
writers were holy men, prophets, evangelists and spirit- 
ual leaders who lived close to God and were in con- 
stant communication with him through prayer and 
meditation, and who, by their hearts and lives thus 
consecrated, were endowed with the power to convey 
to men his Word, sometimes in one form, sometimes in 
another. They were the chosen channels of divine 
communication, interpreting God's purposes in authori- 
tative language, which could be understood by those 
for whom it was intended. 

494. Did Jesus Baptize? 

Whether our Lord personally baptized has been 
doubted. The only passage which may bear on the 



496 Difficult Bible Questions 

question is John 4:1, 2, the explanation of which is 
presumed to be that John, being a servant, baptized 
with his own hand, while Christ as Lord and Master 
''baptized with the Holy Ghost," demonstrating the 
outward symbols through his disciples. Whether he 
baptized personally or not, the fact remains that, during 
his earthly ministry, baptism was the accepted mode of 
entering his service. 

496. What Is the Bible Teaching about 
Usury ? 

The most radical reference to money lending is that 
of Christ himself (Luke 6:35), "Do good and lend, 
hoping for nothing again." But it must be remembered 
that the words were spoken to a people very differently 
situated from ourselves. In our society the convenience 
of loans at interest is a benefit to lender and borrower 
alike. If the practice of taking interest were absolutely 
forbidden, both borrower and lender would suffer, as 
the capitalist would be little likely to lend money if 
he had no compensation, and the borrower would be 
unable to get the capital he needs for carrying on his 
business. The general tenor of Bible teaching seems to 
be that the lender has no right to take advantage of the 
borrower's necessities to exact more than a fair rate 
of interest. Many loans are in the nature of a limited 
partnership, and the borrower is simply paying the 
lender a share of the profit he makes out of the capital 
supplied by the lender, which is a legitimate transac- 
tion. References to usury in the Old Testament are 
found in Ps. 15:5; Nehem. 5:11; Prov. 28:8, and 
Leviticus 25 '.^S~Z7- 



Christian Living 497 

497. How Can Christians Justify War? 

How do you think Joshua, Gideon, David and other 
Old Testament saints felt about it? Do you suppose 
they did not know of the commandment "Thou shalt 
not kill" ? They do not appear to have found any diffi- 
culty in reconciling their duty with it. Samuel could 
scarcely have been ignorant of it, yet he did not hesi- 
tate to hew a man to pieces in cold blood (I Sam. 
I 5 : 33)? Saul was blamed for sparing him, as Ahab 
afterwards was blamed (I Kings 20:42) for similar 
lenity. Elijah appears to have been a good man, yet 
he butchered 450 men (I Kings 18:40) in spite of the 
Commandment, "Thou shalt not kill." If you insist 
on literal obedience to the Commandment, we do 
not see how you can justify the butcher in his trade, 
since the Commandment (Exodus 20:13) does not 
limit the prohibition to human life. The ablest au- 
thorities agree that the Commandment is to be under- 
stood in its spirit. It prohibits murder, in the sense in 
which the word is commonly used. It does not pro- 
hibit w^ars of defense or war in a righteous cause. 
Men like Washington, Havelock and Chinese Gordon, 
and Stonewall Jackson, were conscientious men and 
eminent Christians, yet they went to war without com- 
punction when their duty required it. On the other 
hand war is universally acknowledged as an evil and 
the logical outcome of evil conditions. It is the duty 
of the Christian to make w T ar on war and to hasten to 
bring about peace with all men. The ideal condition 
is that which is pictured in Is. 2 14. 



498 Difficult Bible Questions 

498. Why Were Women Commanded to Keep 
Silence in the Churches? 

In I Corinthians 14:34 Paul was dealing specifically 
with the case of a church which he himself had 
founded. He had received intelligence from the house- 
hold of Chloe, a pious member (see 1 :ii), that serious 
schisms had arisen and that advice was sorely needed. 
From other sources he had learned that the church had 
sunk into corruption and error. Apparently four dis- 
tinct factions had sprung up, all quarreling over their 
respective teachers. There was much bitterness in the 
situation, and, besides, he had learned that immorality 
and disorderly practices had crept in; also that their 
meetings were brought into disrepute by the women 
appearing in them unveiled (in defiance of the common 
usage among decent women of that time) and that 
the feasts of the church were often scenes of gluttony 
and excess. His epistle was written to correct these 
disgraceful conditions, to set matters right, to rebuke 
the offenders and to set before them all anew the es- 
sentials of the Gospel. We can only infer, from the 
general contents of the entire epistle, that certain 
women who had been active in fomenting the trouble 
had merited a share of his chastening message, which 
doubtless produced the desired effect. Elsewhere in 
the Epistles we find full recognition of the character 
and abilities of Christian women, although it is un- 
questioned that they did not in those days take as 
prominent a part in religious affairs as they did later. 
Thus, for instance, there is no mention of women in 
Acts 2:16-18, but this does not necessarily imply their 
exclusion. There are many passages in the New Testa- 
ment which show that godly women had a good share 



Christian Living 499 

in the activities of the early church, but it was not 
customary for them to teach or preach (see Acts 16 -.40, 
17 :i2, 17 :34, etc.). Paul's injunction was not intended 
as a message to all the churches, but to the one par- 
ticular church at Corinth, and it is a mistake and a 
grievous injustice to apply it to women in general. 
They have borne too noble and useful a part in the 
progress of the Christian religion to be subjected to 
any needless criticism that could only be based on a 
misunderstanding as to the actual conditions in the 
Corinthian church which rendered such a message 
necessary. There are many instances of godly women 
in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. 
The ministry of Jesus was to both men and women 
equally. Many of his most devoted followers were 
women. They were the last to comfort him on the way 
to Golgotha, the first to visit his tomb and the first to 
whom he appeared at his resurrection. So why should 
good women today be excluded from taking part in any 
Christian activity? 

499. Is It Seemly to "Make a Gladsome Noise" 
in Worship? 

Christianity is a religion less of the head than of the 
heart, and it is not surprising that the joy of the heart 
should find expression in songs and even at times in 
shouting. These are the natural, unrestrained outlets 
of a soul filled with deep religious fervor and spiritual 
gladness. Scripture literally teems with invitations to 
God's people to such expressions of feeling. Ezra 3:13 
tells of the "noise of the shout of joy" at the laying of 
the foundations of the Temple. In Psalm 33 13, the 
congregation is urged to sing new songs and make a 



500 Difficult Bible Questions 

"loud noise," and in Is. 42:10, we read "let them shout 
and declare his praise"; Job 38:7 relates that the 
"sons of God shouted for joy," while Psalm 65:13, 
describing the condition of the righteous who had been 
blessed with prosperity, says, "they shout for joy 
. . . they also sing." "Let them that put their trust in 
thee rejoice," says the Psalmist (Ps c 5:11), "let them 
shout for joy." In marked contrast is the picture in 
Is. 16:10, of the unrighteous from whom the Lord has 
turned his face, "There is no singing, neither shall 
there be any shouting." Surely the Christian who 
feels his heart overflowing with joy and gratitude to 
God, has the best of all warrants for publishing his 
gladness to the world, if he be so minded. We quite 
understand, however, that there are many natures so 
quiet and reserved that they do not relish any exuber- 
ance and prefer to be moderate in their manifestations. 
In a majority of cases, religious enthusiasm is a matter 
of temperament, each kind proper in its own place. 

500. What Precedent Does the Scripture Fur- 
nish for Solos, Duets and Choir Singing 
in Church? 

In I Cor. 14:26, Paul, referring to the forms of 
worship of the Corinthian church, wrote: "When. ye 
come together, every one of you hath a psalm, etc." 
This verse, especially when read in connection with 
verse 15, "I will sing with the spirit and I will sing 
with the understanding also," implies that certain mem- 
bers sang alone. Tertullian and Augustine refer to 
this custom: "Every one," says Tertullian, "was in- 
vited in their public worship to sing unto God accord- 
ing to his ability, either from the Scriptures or one 



Christian Living 500 

indited by himself." These songs were often ex- 
temporaneous. From the time of the Song of Miriam, 
who either sang alone in response to the other women, 
or led off their singing (Ex. 15:20, 21) there have 
been special singers and groups of singers to lead the 
music in the worship of God. The organization of 
the ancient Hebrew choirs was very elaborate. (See 
II Sam. 6:5; I Chron. chapters 15, 16, 23, 25, etc.) 
The congregation of Israel was so enormous that it 
was difficult if not impossible for all the people to sing 
at once ; and the songs were learned first by the great 
choirs and must have been sung first by them before 
the people learned them; but there is no reason for 
believing that all the congregation joined in all the 
songs. Many consecrated Gospel singers are render- 
ing acceptable worship and service to God in solos, 
duets, quartets and choruses. One is undoubtedly 
right in holding that such music should be really 
spiritual, should be sung without show, simply, clearly, 
earnestly to the glory of God. The body of church 
singing should be by the congregation as a whole, 
but the special solos and choir numbers also have 
their place. 



501 



TEXTS, FAMILIAR AND OTHER 



501. What Is Conveyed in the Statement that 
"God Is No Respecter of Persons"? 

It may seem peculiar for Peter to have made this 
statement (Acts 10:34, 35) as to the vast majority of 
reverent minds it goes without saying. But to Peter, 
brought up as he had been among Pharisees and Sad- 
ducees and other religionists of the Old Dispensation, 
whose central belief was that God was a respecter of 
persons, the discovery of the great truth that God 
cares for all alike, came as a great awakening. The 
Pharisee who loved the uppermost seats in the syna- 
gogues and greetings in the market-places; who de- 
liberately shunned contact with a publican, a woman 
or a Gentile, represented that self-righteous and ex- 
clusive Judaism in which no one else counted, but in 
which he was a favorite of the Most High. This ex- 
clusive Judaism Peter annihilated with the one sen- 
tence of the text, and thereby established the belief in 
that great, universal Fatherhood which, while it is 
all to all, is especially kind to the lowly and the meek ; 
which watches even a sparrow and numbers even the 
hair of our heads. And because of this universal 
Fatherhood, everyone in every nation "that feareth him 
and doeth righteousness" is acceptable to him. He 
makes no distinctions of creeds, of theologies, of usages 
and customs, of observances and differences of 
opinions. 



Texts, Familiar and Other 502-504 



502. In What Sense Is It True that "The Lord 

Giveth and the Lord Taketh Away"? 

When we use the customary phrase that God takes 
away any of our friends from this world, it is simply 
a familiar form of acknowledging submission to his 
will as the Disposer of all things. Life and death are 
in his hands. There is nothing irreverent about such 
an expression. All our blessings come from him and 
if trial and discipline also come we should accept them 
in the proper spirit. We should learn to bow to his 
will, even though it may sometimes try our hearts 
sorely to do so. 

503. What Is Meant by the Passage "Seek Ye 

the Lord While He May Be Found"? 

It is a wholesome warning that a probable contin- 
gency may arise when the seeker, who postpones his 
search, may lose his power or disposition to seek. 
There are many instances of men who have put off 
seeking until they have made a fortune, or done some- 
thing else, and then the time they set, having arrived, 
discover that business habits and long-time associations 
absorb them. They are out of touch with God. Even 
in church their thoughts are running on worldly con- 
cerns. It is very rare for an old man who has been 
indifferent, or careless, or wicked, to turn to God. Not 
that God is unwilling to be found, but the man has 
become incapable of seeking him. None who really 
seek ever fail to find. 

504. What Is the Parallel between Christ and 

Adam? 

"As by the offense of one, judgment came upon all 
men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of 



504 Difficult Bible Questions 

one the free gift came upon all men unto justification 
of life" (Rom. 5:18). In this passage, Paul is com- 
paring the influence of Adam and Christ. His argu- 
ment begins with verse 12 : "By one man sin entered 
into the world, and death by sin." (Dr. Denny says: 
"By Adam the race was launched upon a course of 
sin.") Paul goes on to state that sin was in the world 
before the written law was given, but declares that sin 
is not counted as sin where there is no law. God does 
not condemn a man for breaking a law of which he is 
ignorant. But even where sin was not imputed, death 
reigned, because death had come into the world as 
the result of Adam's sin, and became a universal ex- 
perience, affecting even those who broke no specific 
and plainly stated command, as Adam did. But the 
grace that comes from Christ is even greater than the 
doom that came through Adam. One man sinned, 
and many were condemned ; grace, through Christ, 
pardons many sins. Death reigned because of one 
man ; now abundance of life and grace reign by one, 
Jesus Christ (verse 17). Verse 18 (quoted above) 
sums up what has gone before. Adam's disobedience 
made many men sinners ; Christ's obedience shall make 
many righteous (verse 19). The law was given so 
that sin might be revealed. Sin was in the human 
heart, but men did not realize what it was till the law 
came. The law showed them that they were disobey- 
ing God. "But where sin abounded, grace did much 
more abound;" there was sin for everybody, there is 
grace for everybody — and more grace than sin. The 
reign of sin brings death; the reign of grace brings 
eternal life. 



Texts, Familiar and Other 505-506 

505. What Is Meant by "As Many as Were 

Ordained to Eternal Life Believed"? 

This passage in Acts 13 148 has been much discussed. 
Those Gentiles did not all become believers, but only 
those in whom the preaching of the apostles had 
awakened faith and who, being taken into the congre- 
gation, had striven earnestly to "make their calling and 
election sure." It forcibly reminds us that salvation is 
the gift of God and not in any sense something we 
can obtain by our own merit or acts ; but at the same 
time, in order to attain this gift (which is divinely 
ordained to all those who comply with certain condi- 
tions), we must put ourselves in the attitude of faith 
and belief. Further, throughout the whole Scriptures, 
there is a pervading sense of the fact that many are 
specially called to be saints and to perform a certain 
work, who are obedient to the summons and yet who 
were not in such attitude before. The case of Paul 
is an illustration in point. He was called right out 
of the midst of his sinful life of persecution. Some 
commentators hold that in the case of these Gentiles, 
God had chosen for himself certain men to become 
witness-bearers and to be set apart for a special work. 
Still other translators make the passage read : a As 
many as disposed themselves to eternal life believed, ,, 
referring to I Cor. 16:15. We may add, by way of 
further explanation, that while the call to salvation is 
a universal one, the call to special service is one that 
comes only to the few. 

506. Did the Baptist Doubt Jesus' Messiahship ? 

John's message, asking through his disciples whom 
he sent to Jesus, "Art thou he that should come, or 

23 



507-508 Difficult Bible Questions 

look we for another ?" (Matt. 11:3), was the result of 
impatience, almost of desperation. It must have 
seemed hard to him that his Master should let him 
lie so long in prison, after having been honored to 
announce and introduce him at the beginning of his 
mission. He tried to get Jesus to speak out his mind, 
or at least to set his own mind at rest. The conclu- 
sion of the incident, however, shows that his transient 
doubts were set at rest by the message he received. 

507. What Is Meant by "Buy the Truth and 

Sell It Not"? 

The passage in Prov. 23:23 — "buy the truth and 
sell it not" — is not to be interpreted as meaning that 
both the buying and selling must be wrong. On the 
contrary, the meaning is that we should get the truth, 
whatever it may cost us, and that we should not part 
with it for any consideration, money, pleasure, fame, 
etc., for it is more precious than all of these. (See 
Prov. 4:5-7.) The inspired teacher urges us to get 
the principal thing, the truth, wisdom, understand- 
ing; the world's motto is: "Get riches and with all 
thy getting get more." 

508. Are Any by Nature "Children of God"? 

There is a large and true sense in which all man- 
kind are children of God. Paul could say to the 
idolaters at Athens, "We are also his offspring." But 
there is a higher, closer, nearer sense in which regen- 
erated men only are God's children. John says : "To 
as many as received him, to them gave he power to 
become the sons of God." Speaking pointedly to be- 
lievers, he says, "Beloved, now are we the sons of 



Texts, Familiar and Other 509 

God." So there is no discrepancy between Paul and 
John. The one is speaking of God's children in the 
large human sense, while the other speaks of them in 
the restricted, adopted sense. We have, in fact, to 
recognize four grades of sonship. In the lowest grade 
there is the whole human family. In the next higher 
grade we have the regenerated children, who are really 
children in the spirit. Then in the next grade, we 
have the angels, who in the Book of Job are specially 
designated the "Sons of God" (38:7). Then, highest 
of all, in a sense absolute, unapproachable, divine, 
we have Jesus Christ, pre-eminently God's own Son. 
There is no need, therefore, to stumble at the doctrine 
of the Fatherhood of God ; only we need to distinguish 
between what is implied in the more outward and the 
more inward relationship. 

509. Why Is There No Remission of Sin with- 
out the Shedding of Blood? 

The thought of a sacrifice for sin underlies the 
whole message of the Bible. The fact that John 3:17; 
John 8:11, 12 and other promises do not specifically 
refer to this does not violate in any way the broad, 
general principle. The Bible as a whole states the 
method by which God undertakes to save people from 
sin. The Old Testament, in law and ceremony and 
prophecy, looks forward to a great sacrifice that is to 
be made, of which the sacrifice of animals is but a 
type. The Epistles of the New Testament explain how 
the sacrifice of Christ may be applied by faith to the 
human soul. The Gospels tell the story of the life 
of the Saviour and give with great detail and fulness 
the account of his sacrificial death. He himself said 



510 Difficult Bible Questions 

distinctly of his death (Matt. 26:28), "This is my 
blood of the new testament, which is shed for many 
for the remission of sins." Read with special care 
the 9th and 10th chapters of Hebrews, the 5th and 
6th chapters of Romans ; I John 1 17, and the many 
other passages which state clearly that salvation from 
sin is wrought by the sacrifice of Christ. The fact of 
the atonement underlies all the promises of Scripture. 
It seems idle, as well as dangerous, to speculate 
whether there may be or might have been some other 
way of salvation. This way fits in with our knowledge 
of nature and of life, and has been testified to by mul- 
titudes of redeemed souls. We know that through the 
blood of Christ salvation from sin can be found; we 
certainly do not know that it can be found in any 
other way. 

510. What Is Meant by "Crucify the Son of 
God Afresh"? 

Heb. 6:4-6 is interpreted to refer to those who 
having begun the spiritual life, instead of persevering 
toward perfection, allowed themselves to fall away or 
backslide. Such having already had knowledge of the 
word of truth and having experienced a measure of 
peace in the pardoning love of Christ and the bestowal 
of the gift of the Holy Spirit (though not in all ful- 
ness) were doubly to blame for falling away. Paul 
did not assert that the Hebrews themselves had yet so 1 
fallen, but he warned them that if they did not per- 
severe in going on to perfection, they would retrograde 
and would need to be "renewed" over again. It is 
the deliberate apostate, however, who sins in the light 
of knowledge and crucifies Christ anew whom he holds 



Texts, Familiar and Other 511-512 

up as an object of execration. The elect abide in 
Christ and do not fall away, and he who abides not 
is "cast forth as a withered branch." The marginal 
reading of verse 6 in the Revised Versions makes this 
passage harmonize with the whole spirit of the Bible. 
It is impossible to renew them to repentance "the 
while they crucify the Son of God afresh." 

511. What Is Meant by "Laying Aside Every 

Weight"? 

The passage in Heb. 12:1 means that we are to 
personally apply discipline, and with divine help to 
thrust from us all temptations to carnal and worldly 
indulgence, which would impede our progress in the 
spiritual race. These obstacles are of the character 
mentioned in Mark 9:42-48; Eph. 4:22; Col. 3:9, 10. 
In practical terms, we should include undesirable and 
unprofitable amusements, doubtful associates, foolish 
pride, habitual ill-nature or worry, planning things 
far ahead, striving for social show for appearance's 
sake, deceitfulness, gossip, profanity, exaggeration or 
untruth — in a word, the "familiar sins," and especially 
the one which does "so easily beset us," whatever it 
may be. All of these act as chains and drags to hold 
us back. 

512. Why Did David Say He Had "Not Seen the 

Righteous Forsaken nor His Seed Beg- 
ging Bread"? 

The psalmist (Ps. 37:25) simply stated his own 
experience. He had never seen it. He did not say it 
never occurred. If it did not occur in his day, it 
does in ours. It ought not, and God never designed 



513-514 Difficult Bible Questions 

that it should. There is enough wealth in the world 
to provide food and clothing and shelter for all, but 
under our present system some get more than their 
share, and others suffer and some starve. If a good 
man, though he be the seed of the righteous, acts im- 
prudently, or is wasteful, or speculates unwisely, God 
does not interfere to keep him from ruin. 

513. Is It Possible for One to Be O ver- right eous ? 

Commentators interpret the phrase "righteous over- 
much" (Ecc. 7:16) as descriptive of religious pre- 
sumption ; of that self-made righteousness which would 
lay the greatest stress upon outward performances 
and would claim personal credit for results which 
the true believer recognizes as the gift of divine grace 
alone. Pharisaism, with its hypocritical assumption of 
superior virtue, its multitudinous observances and its 
devotion to form and ceremonial, forgetting the "things 
of the spirit," was the type of the over-righteous. 

514. How Was the Term Saint First Applied to 

the Evangelists? 

During the early days of the Christian Church, 
there was no authoritative use of the word "Saint" as 
a title. Wherever the word occurs in our New Testa- 
ment, it simply means a "devout person," one who has 
been sanctified and specially consecrated. After the 
early Christian era, however, the martyrs and apostles 
were considered as having attained to the dignity of 
sainthood, although there was no formal canonization 
until the ninth century A. D., when the Church of 
Rome introduced formal canonization with special 



Texts, Familiar and Other 515 

ceremonies. There is no definite rule in the Protestant 
Church on the use of the title "Saint." The modern 
Jews have their saints, as well as the Catholics, and 
the appellation they use is "Kadosh." Their most 
celebrated saint is Rabbi Judah Hak-kadosh ("Rabbi 
Judah the Holy"). Protestant writers are not as con- 
sistent as they ought to be in this matter, some apply- 
ing the title and others not at all. The observance of 
saints' days applies specially to the Roman and the 
Oriental Catholic Churches. In the Russo-Greek 
Church the observance of such days has been carried 
to extremes and they are so numerous as to interfere 
seriously with business. Under the influence of the 
Church of Rome in America, saints' days are becoming 
numerous among Catholics here also. 

515. What Are We to Understand by "Time 
and Chains Happeneth to Them All"? 

You are not to take all the words of Ecclesiastes 
9:11 as true and inspired because, as the writer shows, 
he found out that what he said at one time was dis- 
proved later on. He is relating his experience. He 
was seeking happiness, with everything in favor of his 
succeeding. At first he believed he would find it in 
pleasure, afterward in learning, and later in other 
ways. And he tells how he found again and again 
that he had been mistaken. In this particular passage 
he means that the misfortunes of life are just as likely 
to happen to the wise and good as to the foolish. We 
know it is so. In a railroad accident, for instance, a 
clergyman or a philanthropist does not escape simply 
because of his life being beneficent. 



516-518 Di icult Bible Questions 

516. What Is Meant by "Cast Thy Bread Upon 

the Waters"? 

The illustration in Ecclesiastes 11:1 is taken from 
the custom of sowing seed by casting it from the boats 
into the overflowing Nile, or in marshy ground. When 
the waters recede, the grain in the alluvial soil springs 
up. "Waters" expresses multitudes, whose seemingly 
hopeless character as recipients of charity may turn 
out better than we anticipate, so that our gift would 
prove at last not to have been thrown away. The day 
may be near when we ourselves may need the help of 
those whom we have bound to us by kindness. 

517. What Does Paul Mean in Rom. 5:7? 

"For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet 
peradventure for a good man some would even dare 
to die" (Rom. 5:7). The apostle is illustrating the 
fact of the Atonement by the facts of everyday life. He 
says it is hard to find one man who will die for an- 
other, even if that other be righteous; but that for a 
man who is really good (a stronger, warmer word than 
righteous) some might be found who would be willing 
to die. Then follows the keen application: Though 
we were neither good nor righteous, yet Christ died 
for us. 

518. What Is Meant by "Where There Is No 

Vision the People Perish"? 

"Vision" (Prov. 29:18) means communion with God 
and the revelation of his will. When communities or 
nations get out of touch with God and cease to know 
his will, they begin to perish. The Hebrew verb means 
to become "dissipated" and "unbridled" and so perish 



Texts, Familiar and Other 519-520 

■ — in a word, to lose sight of moral and spiritual ideals, 
as a nation or community. Individual Christians and 
the organized church should be constantly seeking a 
clearer sight of God, closer communion with him, and 
a more perfect understanding both of his revealed will 
in the Scriptures and his providential will in present- 
day concerns. 

519. What Is Meant by "All Things Work To- 

gether for Good to Them That Love 
God"? 

This passage (Rom. 8:28) means that the events 
of life, including things that we call misfortunes, 
will be over-ruled to spiritual advantage. The Chris- 
tian is not promised immunity from trouble, but 
that his troubles will tend to make him a better 
man. He is not encouraged to seek discipline, or 
to act recklessly, with the idea that howsoever an en- 
terprise turns out, it will benefit him. But if after he 
has sought divine guidance and if after he has care- 
fully considered a matter, it turns out disastrously, he 
is not to be cast down, but to expect that in some way 
God will make the disaster a blessing to him. 

520. How Can "One Vessel Be Chosen unto 

Honor and Another unto Dishonor"? 

This passage (Rom. 9:21, 23) brings up the discus- 
sion of the whole subject of "election." The Jews 
seem to have gotten the idea, from their long habit of 
exclusiveness r that God had no right to offer salvation 
to the Gentiles. Paul is here trying to make them see 
that God has a right to offer salvation to any one. No 
one can dispute the fact that just as the potter has the 



521 Difficult Bible Questions 

right to form one vessel for high and honorable use and 
another for more humble service, so God has the right 
to create some souls for prominent and important and 
honorable service and others for more lowly tasks. 
However we may interpret the doctrine of election, we 
must not for an instant forget that God is just. "He 
is not willing that any should perish." He desires that 
every soul should have salvation and that every soul 
shall be fitted for successful service. 

521. What Did Paul Mean by "Delivering" an 
Offender unto Satan? 

As the apostle himself states explicitly it was that 
the offender might be saved (see I Cor. 5:5). The 
man, a member of the Corinthian Church, had fallen 
into grievous sin, and was living a vicious life. Paul, 
hearing of it, decides that he must be excluded from 
the church. He repented, as the event proved, for in 
his second epistle Paul directs that he shall be tenderly 
received, lest he be swallowed up by over-much sorrow 
(II Cor. 2\j). The exclusion was leaving the man 
without means of grace, and Paul tells the object of 
it, namely, that the flesh, that is, the lusts and passions 
of his nature, might be purged from him, so that his 
soul might be saved. The casting of him out of the 
Church meant, in Paul's mind, the giving him up to 
punishment and the will of the enemy, not for his eter- 
nal destruction, but for temporary chastisement. Some 
commentators have thought that Paul's sentence in- 
cluded the infliction of some malady, which he certainly 
did inflict in another case (Acts 13:11), but that is 
not directly stated. The words imply discipline that 



Texts, Familiar and Other 522 

would render the man less under the influence of his 
fleshly appetites. The man is put out of the church, 
the fold of God, temporarily, on account of his wrong- 
doing. It was probably so persistent and inexcusable 
that the apostle despaired of Christian influences effect- 
ing a change. He must be made to feel how wicked 
he was, and by the church expelling him they practi- 
cally gave him up for the time. This was probably re- 
garded as delivering him to Satan. They ceased to 
bring Christian love to bear upon him. In at least 
one case, it is thought, the discipline had a good effect, 
if, as is probable, the offender is the one referred to in 
II Cor. 2 :6-8. 

522, What Is Meant by Showing "The Lord's 
Death till He Come"? 

This passage in I Cor. 1 1 :26 has been variously dis- 
cussed. Is it the Lord's presence, the coming to 
take away his followers by death, or his coming to 
judge the world that is here meant? The best exposi- 
tors hold that the apostle clearly referred to the signifi- 
cance of the Lord's Supper as a perpetual memorial 
of the Lord's death, to be observed by the Church until 
the end of this dispensation, or in his own words, "till 
he 'come." It could not have had reference to the 
Lord's spiritual presence, or to the believer's death, 
as Paul implied that the "coming" would terminate the 
observance. It must have referred to the coming he 
describes in I Thess. 2:1-8 and other places, when 
Christ will appear to call his waiting people to himself, 
and afterward descend to destroy his enemies and set 
up his millennial kingdom on the earth. 



523-524 Difficult Bible Questions 

523. What Did Paul Mean by "Caught Up to 

the Third Heaven"? 

Paul was familiar with the learning of his age, and 
was a "master" in literary expression. He sat as a 
pupil "at the feet of Gamaliel," who was celebrated in 
the Talmudist writings as one of the seven teachers 
to whom the title "rabbin" was given. In II Cor. 12 
(which contains the passage in question) Paul speaks 
of his vision when he was "caught up to the third 
heaven." In the Jewish teaching of the time, the first 
heaven was that of the clouds or the air; the second 
that of the stars and the sky, and the third was the 
spiritual heaven, the seat of divine glory. The word 
"heavens" is used in the Bible in varying senses, which 
must be gathered from the context, the most familiar 
being the visible heavens, as distinguished from the 
earth and as a part of the whole creation. (See Gen. 
1:1.) Paul's "third heaven" was thus higher than the 
aerial or stellar world, and cognizable not by the eye, 
but by the mind alone. The word "world" is generally 
used in Scripture in the purely material sense to refer to 
the habitable earth and its people. The passages in 
Heb. 4:3, 9:26, 9:5, 11:7, 11:38, etc., have thus ma- 
terial significance. In John 14:2, however, many in- 
terpreters recognize an implied recognition of other 
worlds, the whole universe being a "house of many 
mansions." 

524. What Are We to Understand by "Work 

Out Your Own Salvation"? 

Grace is inactive without our will, hence the order 
as to "work." "Fear and trembling" simply mean the 
holy reverence which accompanies obedience (see Eph. 



Texts, Familiar and Other 525 

6:5; I Cor. 2:3; II Cor. 7:15); not slavish fear, like 
the terror of a mind in danger of condemnation, but 
anxiety to do what the Lord would have us do, and 
the realization that our own merits are insufficient and 
we must trust him to give strength for our weakness. 
The last clause of the sentence (verse 14) confirms 
this interpretation. 

525. What Is Meant by Being "Baptized with 
the Holy Spirit"? 

The Holy Spirit is received at conversion, but the 
baptism with the Holy Spirit is a further enduement, 
an experience which comes usually at some time after 
conversion. The disciples were regenerated men when 
Jesus told them to tarry in the city of Jerusalem until 
they should be baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 
1:4-5). This was the experience to which he had 
previously referred as the coming of the Comforter 
(John 14, 15, 16). God's Spirit is constantly trying 
to get into a man's heart. He speaks to him in many 
ways, convicting of sin, urging to repentance, etc. The 
impressions leading to a wise and safe course of action, 
which a man may receive before he is converted, are 
really the messages of the Holy Spirit. God is very 
good, and tries to help us in every way. But it is not 
until one has become a child of God and received the 
fullness of the Spirit that he can expect to have the 
clear guidance of the Holy Spirit. 



526 



THE HEREAFTER 



526. Were the Jews Taught to Look Forward 
to a Heaven or Hell? 

From the first mention of the tree of life in Para- 
dise, the eating of which would make immortal, the 
idea of a continued existence has had a place in Jewish 
theology. Many passages might be quoted to show 
this belief. See the Mosaic injunctions against necro- 
mancy, or the invocation of the dead, Deu. 18:9-12; I 
Sam. 28; Ps. 106 :28 and other passages. Moses wrote 
that God "took" Enoch (Gen. 5:22, 24), because he 
had lived a pious life. David speaks of his child in 
another life when he says, "I will go to him, but he 
shall not return to me," (see II Sam. 12:23), Job says 
(Job 19:26 and 2j) that he "will see God for himself 
and not anotjher" in the future life. Ecclesiastes, which 
doubtless echoed faithfully the theology of that day, 
shows very clearly the belief in a spiritual life (Ecc. 
12 -7) ; see also the allusions in the Psalms (the Jewish 
Psalter) to expectations of reward and punishment 
after death (Ps. 17:15, 49:15, 16, 73:24, 26, 28). 
These and other passages which might be quoted, make 
it certain that the ancient Jews did believe in a future 
life; but it is equally certain that they had only dim 
and uncertain views on the subject, and that the full 
knowledge was not attained by any race or nation on 
earth until Christ himself came to "bring life and im- 
mortality to light." 



The Hereafter 527-528 

527. Did There Exist a Belief in Immortality 

before the Christian Era? 

Although before the dawn of Christianity there were 
nations who undoubtedly had glimpses of immortality, 
it was not until Christ came, "bringing life and im- 
mortality to life" (II Tim. 1:10), that the world be- 
gan to realize the glorious future which was assured 
to those that love God and follow obediently the teach- 
ings of his Son. The Hindus, Egyptians, Chinese, Per- 
sians, and even the American Indians, Polynesians, 
Australian aborigines and Greenlanders believed in a 
future life, but all more or less dimly. The ancient 
Greeks had a clearer conception of immortality, which 
was well defined by Socrates in his last speech. There 
are hints of the same belief in the Jewish teachings 
also, although they are indefinite (see Gen. 5:22, 24, 
37:35 and other passages). Jesus lifted the veil. Some, 
today, deny the inherent immortality of the soul, while 
admitting that it is conferred as the "gift of God" upon 
those who are accepted. The Church of Christ today, 
however, teaches immortality — a future life of bliss 
or of woe, to be decided at the judgment. The duty of 
Christians is, as Paul urges, to strive to "win the prize" 
and so to begin to live eternally, here and now, in the 
realization of God's pardon and acceptance promised 
through his Son. 

528. What Does "Damnation" Mean? 

Damnation, or condemnation, does not always imply 
the final loss of the soul. Thus the passage in Rom. 
13 :2 clearly means condemnation from the rulers, "who 
are a terror to evil-doers." I Cor. 1 1 :2g means that 
the offender would be exposed to severe temporal judg- 



526 



THE HEREAFTER 



526. Were the Jews Taught to Look Forward 
to a Heaven or Hell? 

From the first mention of the tree of life in Para- 
dise, the eating of which would make immortal, the 
idea of a continued existence has had a place in Jewish 
theology. Many passages might be quoted to show 
this belief. See the Mosaic injunctions against necro- 
mancy, or the invocation of the dead, Deu. 18:9-12; I 
Sam. 28; Ps. 106 128 and other passages. Moses wrote 
that God "took" Enoch (Gen. 5.122, 24), because he 
had lived a pious life. David speaks of his child in 
another life when he says, "I will go to him, but he 
shall not return to me," (see II Sam. 12:23), Job says 
(Job 19:26 and 27) that he "will see God for himself 
and not another'' in the future life. Ecclesiastes, which 
doubtless echoed faithfully the theology of that day, 
shows very clearly the belief in a spiritual life (Ecc. 
12 \j) ; see also the allusions in the Psalms (the Jewish 
Psalter) to expectations of reward and punishment 
after death (Ps. 17:15, 49:15, 16, 73:24, 26, 28). 
These and other passages which might be quoted, make 
it certain that the ancient Jews did believe in a future 
life; but it is equally certain that they had only dim 
and uncertain views on the subject, and that the full 
knowledge was not attained by any race or nation on 
earth until Christ himself came to "bring life and im- 
mortality to light." 



The Hereafter 527-528 

527. Did There Exist a Belief in Immortality 

before the Christian Era? 

Although before the dawn of Christianity there were 
nations who undoubtedly had glimpses of immortality, 
it was not until Christ came, "bringing life and im- 
mortality to life" (II Tim. 1:10), that the world be- 
gan to realize the glorious future which was assured 
to those that love God and follow obediently the teach- 
ings of his Son. The Hindus, Egyptians, Chinese, Per- 
sians, and even the American Indians, Polynesians, 
Australian aborigines and Greenlanders believed in a 
future life, but all more or less dimly. The ancient 
Greeks had a clearer conception of immortality, which 
was well defined by Socrates in his last speech. There 
are hints of the same belief in the Jewish teachings 
also, although they are indefinite (see Gen. 5:22, 24, 
37:35 and other passages). Jesus lifted the veil. Some, 
today, deny the inherent immortality of the soul, while 
admitting that it is conferred as the "gift of God" upon 
those who are accepted. The Church of Christ today, 
however, teaches immortality — a future life of bliss 
or of woe, to be decided at the judgment. The duty of 
Christians is, as Paul urges, to strive to "win the prize" 
and so to begin to live eternally, here and now, in the 
realization of God's pardon and acceptance promised 
through his Son. 

528. What Does "Damnation" Mean? 

Damnation, or condemnation, does not always imply 
the final loss of the soul. Thus the passage in Rom. 
13 :2 clearly means condemnation from the rulers, "who 
are a terror to evil-doers." I Cor. 11:29 means that 
the offender would be exposed to severe temporal judg- 



529-530 Difficult Bible Questions 

ments from God and to the censure of good men. 
Rom. 14:23 means that such a one is condemned al- 
ready by the Word and by his own conscience. The 
final loss of the soul of the impenitent, however, is 
clearly taught in many passages, including Rom. 6 123 ; 
Matt. 25:41; Jas. 1:15; Matt. 10:28; II Thess. 1:9; 
Matt. 25:30; Luke 16:23, 26. 

529, What of One Who Lives Nobly, yet Who 

Is Not a Christian? 

He will not be as one who lived a purely selfish life, 
because he will not suffer those reproaches of con- 
science, which may be expected to torture the selfish 
man. If, however, he has heard the Gospel and re- 
jected it, we do not see how he can expect recognition 
of, or reward from God on account of his good deeds. 
Christ said emphatically, "no one cometh unto the 
Father but by me." If, therefore, a man rejects Christ 
and takes his stand on his own merits, he plainly inti- 
mates that he considers his way better than God's way. 
He makes Christ's life and death, so far as he is con- 
cerned, unnecessary. If a man who is bringing a suit 
in a court wilfully and contemptuously ignores the 
rules of the court, he is not likely to be heard, no mat- 
ter what are the merits of his case. So a man who 
rejects Christ puts himself out of court. We are not 
to judge, however, in such cases. 

530. What Is the "Second Death"? 

Spiritual, or "second death," implies "everlasting 
punishment" (Rev. 21 :8) — -the utter lack of all spirit- 
ual hope of restoration or reclamation. It means en- 
tire separation from God. Death, in the destructive 



The Hereafter 531 

sense, applies to the entire man and every part of his 
nature. We speak even now of men as "spiritually 
dead" while they yet live in the body, just as we 
speak of men who may be already in the grave, as 
"spiritually alive/' and who shall never die. Spiritual 
death may begin even in this life. Death, therefore, 
need not imply extinction and annihilation. One com- 
mentator writes : "The proper life of the spirit lies in the 
harmony and subjection of its powers and disposition 
to the nature and will of God ; its death in contrariety 
and enmity to him. This involves the disruption of a 
holy and dutiful relation with the Father of spirits, 
and by inevitable consequence a deprivation of the 
fruits of his love and favor on which life and blessed- 
ness depend. The whole man shall go away forever 
from the glory and joy of God's presence," 

531. What Does Death Do to the Body! 

When life ceases, the body as an individual organiza- 
tion is said to be dead ; that is to say, death is the ces- 
sation of organic life. Matter, however, is indestructi- 
ble; when it loses one form it appears in another. The 
matter of which the body is composed does not perish 
on the death of an organized being; it undergoes va- 
rious changes which are known by the names of decay 
and putrefaction and which are the preparation for its 
becoming subservient to new forms of life. What be- 
comes of the mind or thinking principle in man, other- 
wise the soul, is altogether a matter of religious faith 
or philosophic conjecture on which science has been 
unable to throw the slightest light. But it should not 
be forgotten that "there is a natural body and there is 

24 



532 Difficult Bible Questions 

a spiritual body" (I Cor. 15:44). God has revealed 
the truth in the Bible, and particularly in the historic 
fact of Christ's resurrection, that the soul which is 
in harmony with himself will live forever. For the 
Scripture teaching concerning the resurrection of the 
body read I Cor. 15, which has been recognized from 
the earliest Christian times as the expression of the 
Christian's faith about the future life. Note particu- 
larly verses 35-44, 5°"54. 

532. Will Our Resurrection Bodies Rise with 
Us on the Judgment Day? 

See this whole subject fully set forth in I Cor. 15th 
chapter. A vast amount of philosophic conjecture has 
been expended and many books have been written 
about it; but the fact remains that nowhere is it more 
clearly and comprehensively stated than in this chapter. 
The belief in the resurrection of the human body has 
apparently been fortified by the well-known passage in 
Job. 19 126, which in the old version was mistranslated, 
but is corrected in the Revised to read "yet without my 
flesh shall I see God." All the evidences go to show 
that while the body to be raised shall be such as to pre- 
serve identity, it will be a purified, changed and spirit- 
ualized body, with the grosser material elements re- 
moved or so transformed as to render them fit for 
heaven and immortality. It shall become a glorified 
body like unto that of Christ. (See I Cor. 15:49; Rom. 
6:9; Phil. 3:21.) The bodies of those who are alive 
at the last day will undergo a similar miraculous puri- 
fying transformation without death (see II Cor. 5:4; 
I Thess. 4:15; Phil. 3:21). 



The Hereafter 533 

533. Does a Person Go Directly to Heaven or 
Hell after Death? 

There is no passage that asserts it explicitly. There 
are, however, passages from which the inference is 
made. One of these is the assurance of Christ to the 
dying thief on the cross (Luke 23 143), "This day shalt 
thou be with me in Paradise.'' Another is the Parable 
of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), in 
which Dives is represented as being in torment and 
Lazarus in Abraham's bosom, while the five brothers 
of Dives were still alive on the earth. A third pas- 
sage is Philippians 1 :23, in which Paul says he desires 
to depart and be with Christ, implying that his death 
would give him that felicity, but he prefers to abide 
in the flesh because he can do good in the world. From 
these passages and a few others the deduction is made 
that there is no interval between death and the eternal 
state; but some eminent Christians now and in past 
times have thought that there is an interval long or 
short, and some that it lasts till the resurrection. In 
Matt. 22:31, 32; Mark 12:26, and Luke 20:37, 3^, 
Christ insists that the righteous who are called "dead" 
are still alive. The appearance of Moses and Elijah 
with Christ at the transfiguration was an actual dem- 
onstration of this fact. Even at the very beginning of 
the Bible (Gen. 5:24), there is the implication that 
Enoch continued in another life the walk with God 
which he had begun in this. And Heb. 12 :i, including 
all the faith heroes mentioned in the eleventh chapter, 
states that they are alive and conscious now, witnessing 
the conflicts of the saints still on earth. Many books 
have been written concerning the state of the soul be- 
tween death and the resurrection. Catholics have the 



534 Difficult Bible Questions 

doctrine of purgatory, but the early Christians held no 
such belief. They believed that there was a judgment 
immediately after death and a final judgment later, 
and that in the intermediate state (not "place"), every 
believer's soul would find a foretaste of the greater 
joys to come. Some non-Catholic authorities have hefd 
that the soul after leaving the body remains inert until 
the resurrection. The best authorities, however, hold 
that it retains its active powers, and is assigned to a 
condition which is suited to its degree of spiritual de- 
velopment until the final change. Dr. Tuck points out 
that Hades, the abode of the departed, was regarded 
by the Hebrews as divided into two sections: one for 
the good; the other for the wicked. "Both together 
made up the abode of the dead"; one Paradise, the 
other Gehenna. Paradise was to the Jewish theolo- 
gians a state of future bliss with lower and higher 
stages ; yet it is not the final stage. See also II Cor. 
12:4; I Pet. 3:19; II Cor. 5:6-8. On the other hand, 
there are passages that are capable of a different con- 
struction. See Job 7:21; Dan. 12:2; I Cor. 15:51; 
I Thess. 4:14. In these passages, it is probable 
that "sleep" may refer to the body and not to the 
spirit. 

534. If the Saved Go Directly to Heaven after 
Death, Why a Resurrection Followed by 
a Judgment Day? 

In dealing with spiritual things, one must guard 
against materialistic conceptions of the after life which 
prevailed previous to the Messianic advent. Only as 
associated with the physical and material is spirit cog- 
nizant of time and place. Jesus had to use these forms 



The Hereafter 535 

of speech in order to make his teachings comprehensi- 
ble to the people; but on many occasions he strove to 
raise and enlighten their minds to a clearer spiritual 
understanding. God is Spirit, incomprehensible, inde- 
scribable. God is in heaven, yet God is everywhere, 
hence heaven is everywhere. See Matt. 6 133 ; Luke 
17:20, 21; Luke 23:43 and other passages. From 
these it must be evident that by the term "heaven" is 
meant a state or condition of existence. Resurrection 
and final judgment were taught in Egypt centuries be- 
fore the days of Moses; were in a modified form in- 
corporated in the teachings of the Hebrews, and so 
passed down into the doctrines of the Christian Church. 
They are an appanage of the belief in immortality, and 
mark the boundary to which the human mind can 
soar. But when we come to question the why and 
wherefore, we are seeking a deeper revelation of God's 
purposes than he has been pleased to give us. John 
3:13 must not be separated from its preceding verse. 
No one can explain or throw light on spiritual condi- 
tions without having first entered into such spirituality 
for himself or herself, neither can such teaching or 
explanation be understood or accepted by any who 
themselves have not so entered. This is why mate- 
rialistic ideas of a future state still so universally pre- 
vail. See Eph. 4 :g, 10. 

535. Should a Christian Dread the Thought of 
a Hereafter? 

One who does should pray for more faith, and keep 
the fact constantly in mind that he who has promised 
cannot lie. Professor David Smith expresses this at- 
titude very clearly and convincingly. He says : "If 



536 Difficult Bible Questions 

we were truly Christian, we would be less concerned 
about this question of the hereafter, for we would have 
a larger and braver trust in God. There is nothing 
more calming than recognition of the fact that it is 
not God that condemns, but sin. God is our Saviour, 
and his thoughts towards every creature of his hand 
are thoughts of good, and not of evil. If any perish, 
it is in spite of him. He is the Father of us all ; and 
when I think what has been shown us of his heart 
by his eternal Son, our Brother and Lord, Jesus 
Christ, I am not afraid of anything that he may do, 
and I am well content to leave my future in his 
hands. He will do for every child of his undying 
affection the best that love can devise. Why 
should we fret or fear? God knows, and he is our 
Father/' 

536. Will More Souls Be Lost than Saved? 

It is impossible to answer with any degree of au- 
thority. God alone knows who are lost or saved. One 
factor, however, that may tend to a solution of it is, 
that we are assured that there will come a time when 
the whole world will acknowledge Christ's sway. As 
the population of the world increases from year to 
year, we may assume that at that time, whenever it 
occurs, there will be more people on earth than at any 
preceding period in the world's history, which will ma- 
terially add to the total number who are saved. The 
question is not one that is of profit. Christ did not 
encourage speculation on the subject. When the ques- 
tion was put to him he would not answer it, but 
gave the questioner practical advice. (See Luke 
13:23.) 



The Hereafter 537-538 

537. Shall We Know Each Other in the Fu- 

ture Life? 

We find the assurance of heavenly recognition in a 
number of passages both in the Old Testament and 
New Testament. David said of his dead son : "I shall 
go to him, but he shall not return to me" (II Sam. 
12:23). See also the parable of Dives and Lazarus, 
which teaches recognition. See Phil. 3 120 ; Heb. 12 :i ; 
Matt. 17:3; Rev. 6:9, 10; Rom. 14:12; Luke 16:23; 
Rev. 6:9, 10; I Thess. 4:13-18; Heb. 13:17; Matt. 
8:11; Eph. 3:15. These and other passages indicate 
the preservation of identity. We have no reason to 
doubt that the redeemed will know each other, that 
pure friendship begun on earth will there be perfected, 
that we shall know the saints and our own dear ones. 
Heaven is the Christian's fatherland, where we shall 
see our friends and know them. 

538. What Will Heaven Be Like? 

Of heaven itself and the blessedness in the life to 
come, we know only what is revealed in the Scriptures, 
and it is not possible, from such limited knowledge, to 
form any adequate "conception. The Bible describes 
the happiness of heaven in general terms. See Rom. 
8:18, 22\ II Cor. 4:17, 18. It is described as a king- 
dom (Matt. 25 :i) ; as a place of rest; as a place where 
knowledge will go on to perfection, and as a state in 
w 7 hich the saints will dwell together. It will be a place 
of complete felicity, w^here the enjoyment will be 
heightened by friendly intercourse. It is further de- 
scribed as having a city with everlasting foundations; 
a place of innumerable homes (see John 14:2) ; a place 
where we shall meet our loved ones and our children 



539 Difficult Bible Questions 

(see II Sam. 12:23; Luke 16:25). John in Rev. 22 
tells us of the "pure river of water of life" and "the 
tree of life with its abundance of fruits." Beyond 
these little is disclosed ; but we have enough to assure 
us that it is a place of great happiness (see I Con 
2 :g) ; of blessed reunions where there are eternal youth 
and strength and where sorrow, sighing, pain and the 
afflictions that wound us in this life are unknown. 

539. Shall We Have Work to Do in Heaven? 

A life without occupation is inconceivable. One of 
the great equipments for such occupation will be the 
enjoyment of perpetual youth — implying strength for 
service. Unquestionably it will be a life of intense 
activity — a busy place, with high avocations suited to 
the varied degrees of skill and to the endowments of 
the redeemed. Throughout the Scriptures, all evidences 
point to the conclusion that it is to be a life of ac- 
tivity, progress and spiritual development on the high- 
est lines, when we have the assurance that God is him- 
self a ceaseless worker (see John 5:17). Besides, in 
Heb. 1 :i4, it is clearly intimated that the redeemed will 
be actively engaged in carrying on the Lord's work, 
by a ministry to those who need help and consolation. 
They serve God continually (Rev. 7:15), and doubtless 
in a great variety of ways. "There is not the least 
reason to suppose," writes an able commentator, "that 
God will abolish this variety (of talent and abilities) in 
the future world; it will rather continue there, in all 
its extent. We must suppose that there will be, even 
in the heavenly world, a diversity of tastes, of labors, 
and of employments, and that to one person this, to 
another that field, in the boundless kingdom of truth 



The Hereafter 540-541 

and of useful occupation, will be assigned for his cul- 
tivation, according to his peculiar powers, qualifica- 
tions, and tastes/' This is the view now generally ac- 
cepted by the Christian Church throughout the world. 

540. What of Wives and Husbands in Heaven? 

A similar question was put to Christ (Matt. 22:23- 
30). You will see how he answered it. We know 
very little of the conditions of life in the spirit. We 
cannot easily conceive of life apart from the body, yet 
it is obvious that there is such life. Christ's answer 
to his questioners appears to imply that the material 
relationships of life are left behind, and that while we 
shall recognize one another, there will be such a puri- 
fication and elevation of being that all idea of mar- 
riage will be lost in the sublimity of spiritual life. In 
Luke 20 127-40, Jesus was questioned on a similar topic 
-and was replying to questions about the resurrection. 
Marriage was ordained to perpetuate the human 
family ; but as there will be no breaches by death in the 
future state, the ordinance will cease and man will be 
like the angels in his immortal nature. This immor- 
tality, however, referred only to "those w r ho shall be 
counted worthy." 

541. How Can One Be Happy in Heaven if 

He Knows His Dear Ones Are Lost? 

It is difficult, in view of the very little we know 
about heaven and the life of those admitted there, to 
conceive of their feelings and condition. All that we 
do know indicates a condition of happiness ; that is 
certain. It may be that in the presence of God right- 
eousness becomes so paramount a consideration, and 
sin is seen to be so dreadful and heinous a thing that 



542-544 Difficult Bible Questions 

the redeemed and purified soul shrinks from it as 
utterly loathsome, even when it exists in persons he 
loved in his earthly life. Pure souls may seem nearer 
to one in heaven than impure souls, though they may 
have had an earthly relationship. Christ being told 
that his mother and brethren desired to speak to him, 
said (Matt. 12:50) : "Whosoever shall do the will of 
my Father the same is my brother and sister and 
mother/' as much as to say that spiritual likeness 
counted for more with him than physical relationship. 
Redeemed souls, in becoming like him, therefore, may 
not suffer such poignant sorrow as to us now seems 
inevitable. 

542. Shall We See God in Heaven? 

There are several passages in the Bible which make 
clear statements on this subject. See Luke 1 :i9; Rev. 
5:8, n; Jude 24; Matt. 5:8; Isaiah 33:17; Job 19:26, 
2.7 ; I John 3 :2, and others. 

543. Are There Degrees in Heaven? 

There are several passages that would seem to indi- 
cate the probability of degrees. Daniel's famous pas- 
sage relative to the soul-winners who will "shine as 
the stars forever" is one ; Paul implies a similar diver- 
sity when he speaks of one star differing from an- 
other in glory; so did Jesus in his reply to the two 
disciples for whom it was asked that they should sit 
at his right and left hand in his kingdom. The parable 
of the talents also bears a kindred interpretation. 

544. Will Infants Be Saved? 

In the passage in Rom. 5:18 the sin of Adam and 
the merits of Christ are pronounced as co-extensive; 



The Hereafter 545 

the words In both cases are practically identical : 
"Judgment came upon all men" and "the free gift 
came upon all men." If the whole human race be in- 
cluded in the condemnation for original sin, then the 
whole race must also be included in the justification 
through Christ's sacrifice. Children dying in infancy, 
before the age of understanding or moral responsi- 
bility, are all partakers of this inclusive justification. 
Were it otherwise, a very large proportion of the 
human race would have no share in this "free gift," 
but would be condemned for sin which they never 
committed, which is contrary to the divine characteris- 
tics of love and justice, contrary to the apostolic teach- 
ings, and contrary to the spirit and language of the 
Master himself, who said of the innocent children : "Of 
such is the kingdom of heaven." This is the general 
attitude of theology today on this matter. Faith al- 
ways presupposes knowledge and power to exercise 
it, and as a little child has neither, it has no moral 
responsibility. Even so stern a theologian as Calvin 
held practically this view. Any other conception of 
God would make him a Moloch instead of a loving 
Father. 

545. What Will Be the Status of Infants in 
Heaven ? 

The only pertinent passage we recall is the incident 
of David and his infant child (II Sam. 12:23), in 
which he expressed the belief that he would go to him. 
Evidently he expected joy in meeting the child and ex- 
pected recognition. Christ made an enigmatical remark 
about the angels of children (Matt. 18:10), as if im- 
plying that children had angels as their guardians in 



546 Difficult Bible Questions 

heaven. Then, too, he took a child and set him before 
his disciples with the words : "Of such is the kingdom 
of heaven" (Matt. 19 :i4). In the spiritual state, when 
the body is left behind, there is no question of growth. 
It is a matter of development. What condition then 
is so favorable to a beautiful development as the at- 
mosphere of heaven? That must be a very beautiful 
nature, which never having sinned, has grown up in 
heaven in such society as exists there. There is no 
reason to suppose that the future life will be other 
than one of progress, and this would imply progress in 
growth in every direction. We can only conjecture, 
'however, what that growth will mean in the spiritual 
world. 

546. Will the Heathen Be Lost? What does 
Scripture teach on the Subject ? 

The greatest minds in religion and philosophy have 
discussed the fate of the unevangelized heathen. Jus- 
tin Martyr and Clement held that they were called 
justified and saved by their philosophy and their vir- 
tuous lives under natural law. Zwingle contended that 
the heathen who had never been evangelized would be 
forgiven through the merits of Christ, although they 
had never heard of him. Christ himself said (Matt. 
11:20-24) that the wicked but ignorant people of 
ancient Sodom and Gomorrah (who lived long before 
the Gospel age) would be more tolerantly dealt with 
than those who had heard the Gospel and rejected it. 
Paul (Rom. 2:14, 26, 27) shows that those not having 
either the law or the Gospel "may be a law unto them- 
selves." We cannot therefore assert that the heathen 
who died in ignorance of Christ are beyond the reach 



The Hereafter 546 

of the Divine mercy, although we may not know in 
what form that mercy may be extended. In every age 
and every land God had his witnesses in the person of 
good men and women, whose upright lives, even under 
natural law, were a blessing to those around them. 
Who shall say that such are not acceptable to him? 
(See Acts 10:35.) The whole question of heathen 
salvation is one concerning which no one has a right 
to dogmatize. It should be left in God's hands. John 
Wesley wrote on this subject: "We have no author- 
ity from the Word of God to judge 'those that are 
without'," and he also wrote, toward the close of his 
ministry, "He that f eareth God and worketh righteous- 
ness according to the light he has, is acceptable to 
God." (See Rom. 4:9.) God, who will judge all, 
will not judge unjustly. Every person will be judged 
according to the light he has had. There is no explicit 
statement as to the condition of the heathen who died 
without hearing the Gospel, and there was no reason 
why God should tell us what he does in respect to 
them. As, however, we are told that there is no way 
of attaining eternal life except through Christ, there 
is abundant and urgent reason for the church to make 
earnest effort to carry the Gospel to those who have 
not heard it. The heathen are in God's hand ; it would 
be presumption on our part to say what he will do with 
them. It is sufficient for us to know that it is our duty 
to preach the word of salvation "to every creature." 
We can see no way in which salvation can come to 
those who died without the Gospel ; but that does not 
prove that, in the infinite resources of God's compas- 
sion, there is no way. 



547 Difficult Bible Questions 

547. Does Not the Revelation of God's Love 
Make the Doctrine of Hell Incredible? 

Not in all its aspects. God has not revealed definitely 
what kind of place the abode of the lost is, but mere- 
ly that it is a place of weeping, gnashing of teeth and 
intense suffering, typified by burning. The idea is 
not inconsistent with what we know of sin here. We 
know the kind of a life a young man will lead in his 
premature old age if he gives himself to vice in his 
youth. However loving his father may be, he cannot 
save the lad from physical suffering if he persists in 
evil courses. He can only warn him, and God does 
that with his children. We have no ground given us 
for expecting that God will give another opportunity, 
although he may do so, for there are no limits to his 
mercy; but it is an awful risk to run. Our duty is to 
accept the opportunity that is offered now and not to 
speculate on the possibility of there being another. The 
terms of the offer read to us like those of a final offer. 
We cannot conceive of God being inconsistent. The 
punishment of the impenitent seems to be not so much 
an infliction by God, as the result of choice on the part 
of the sufferer. You may have seen a boy at school, in 
spite of all warnings and all advice, neglect his lessons 
and give his time to play and idleness. Can he blame 
his teacher or his parents, if at the end of his school 
life he is ignorant and is unfit for a profession? If 
a young man voluntarily associates with men of foul 
life and coarse manners and acquires their habits, do 
you blame a refined lady if she excludes him from her 
home? If a child who has been warned against touch- 
ing a hot stove and has had the consequences explained 
to him, avails himself of a brief absence of his mother 



The Hereafter 548 

to lay his hand on the glowing metal, he must not 
blame his mother when he suffers. If he is so badly 
burned that he loses his hand, he goes through life 
maimed because of that momentary act. We do not 
blame the mother, or charge her with being incon- 
sistent. All her love cannot save him from the conse- 
quences of his own perversity. When a man deliberate- 
ly chooses sin after being warned of the consequences, 
and refuses the offer of pardon and regeneration, what 
is to be expected as to his future? Still, we are not to 
judge others, and above all we should not attempt to 
set limits to the Divine mercy. 

548. Is There Any Bible Warrant for Believing 
in Repentance after Death? 

The well-known passage "That at the name of Jesus 
every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things 
in earth and things under the earth" (Phil. 2:10), has 
been construed by some to imply that there may be 
repentance after death. It rather implies a confession 
of Christ's supremacy and triumph. We can imagine 
a man dying impenitent, realizing afterwards how 
foolish as well as how wicked he has been. You re- 
member that in the parable of Dives and Lazarus 
(Luke 16:27, 28), the rich man was so convinced of 
his folly that he begged for his brothers to be warned, 
lest they, too, should be lost. James, too (2:19), says 
that the devils believe and tremble. It is not so much 
a question of whether there is repentance after death, 
as whether repentance avails then. It is not for us to 
limit the mercy of God, but there is nothing in the 
Bible to encourage the hope of there being an oppor- 
tunity of gaining salvation after death. Any man 



549 Difficult Bible Questions 

postponing repentance till then, runs an appalling risk 
against which he is emphatically warned. That there 
is no chance for repentance after death cannot be 
absolutely proved, but the trend of Bible teaching is 
in that direction. The passage (Ecc. 11:3), "If the 
tree fall toward the north," etc., is often quoted in 
proof, but the inference is not decisive. So also is 
Rev. 22:11, "He that is filthy, let him be filthy Still," 
etc., which is more to the purpose, but not absolute 
proof. Another passage implying the hopelessness of 
the lost is Luke 16:26, "Between us and you there is 
a great gulf fixed, so that they which would pass from 
hence to you, cannot," etc. The burden of proof, how- 
ever, seems to be on those who contend that there is 
opportunity of repentance after death. Where there 
are such momentous issues at stake, a man must have 
very positive assurance of there being the opportunity 
before he decides to run the risk, and he does not 
appear to us to have any ground at all. 

549. What Is the Paradise Which Jesus Prom- 
ised the Repentant Thief? 

Jesus' answer to the appeal of the penitent thief on 
the cross "gave him what he needed most — the as- 
surance of rest and peace. The word 'paradise' meant 
to him repose and shelter, the greatest contrast possi- 
ble to the thirst and agony and shame of the hours 
upon the cross." Paul speaks of degrees of heavenly 
exaltation (II Cor. 12:3), and the religious teaching 
of the Jews of that day taught this. The promise 
spoken by the Saviour, however we may interpret it, 
conveyed to the penitent the assurance that his future 



The Hereafter 550-551 

place would be one best fitted for him, and beyond this 
it is useless to speculate. 

550. Does the Soul Exist Apart from the Body 

after Death? 

Paul evidently looked forward to such a condition 
when he said that he was willing to be absent from the 
body and present with the Lord (II Cor. 5:8). He 
refers to the subject again in I Thess. 4:14, when he 
speaks of Christ bringing with him before the resurrec- 
tion them, who sleep in him. John saw (Rev. 6:10) the 
souls of the martyrs under the altar, clearly without 
their bodies. The parable of Dives and Lazarus (Luke 
16:19-31) implies that the resurrection had not taken 
place when Dives made his petition to Abraham, inas- 
much as the five brothers were still living. The cor- 
rected translation of the well-known passage in Job 
19:26, makes it read, "Yet without my flesh shall I 
see God." These are a few of the passages directly 
implying the doctrine, though there are teachers, very 
sincere in their belief, who put another construction on 
the passages, and others making them harmonize with 
the doctrine that the soul has no separate existence. 

551. Will There Be a Millennium and [What 

Will It Be Like? 

There are some Christians who do not look for a 
personal reign of Christ on the earth. Those who do 
so, base their belief chiefly on such passages as Rev. 
2o:4r6: "They shall be priests of God and of Christ, 
and shall reign with him a thousand years." Isaiah 
2:3, which describes the extent of Christ's dominion. 
Isaiah 1 1 -.9, which describes the change of disposition 

25 



552 Difficult Bible Questions 

in the animal creation. Zech. 14:16-21, which predicts 
the supremacy and purity of his reign and Heb. 8:10, 
11, promising the universal acceptance of Christianity. 
Besides these, there are the promises to Abraham of 
the possession by his descendants of an area they have 
never yet possessed, and those that Christ would oc- 
cupy the throne of David. The Scriptures do not give 
clear or definite accounts of the conditions of life 
in the millennium, but we infer that it will be a time 
of extraordinary conversion, and that great multitudes 
will be born again in a day. (See Micah 4:2; Is. 
2:2-4.) See Rev. 20:4, 5. The apostle appears to 
teach (I Cor. 15:35-52) that a new spiritual body will 
be given in place of the one that has turned to dust. 

552. Have Angels Wings? 

There is little positive Scriptural authority for the 
popular conception of the angelic form as endowed 
with wings. The "angels" of the Bible, who visited 
men, seem to have appeared in the human form, and 
were often accepted and entertained as men until, 
through the utterance of some remarkable prophecy or 
the manifestation of some supernatural quality, their 
spiritual nature was disclosed. The fact that they 
were "messengers" of God, may have supplied basis 
for the idea that they have wings as a means of swift 
and ethereal progression. The winged cherubim and 
seraphim seem to belong to a higher order of celestial 
beings than those designated "angels," since they are 
always represented as standing in the immediate pres- 
ence of God in heaven or guarding his dwelling-place 
on earth. The golden cherubim watching over the 
mercy-seat in the ark of the covenant were four- 



The Hereafter 553-554 

winged, so were those mighty figures under whose 
outstretched pinions the ark was placed in Solomon's 
Temple. Four-winged were the "living creatures" of 
Ezekiers dream, "who every one went straight forward 
whither the spirit was to go." Six-winged were the 
seraphim of Isaiah's vision, who stood above the 
"Throne of the Lord," crying, "Holy, holy, holy is the 
Lord of hosts" — almost the same song which later 
the four-winged "beasts" of Revelation cried day and 
night before the Throne. 

553. What Is Meant By "a New Heaven and 

a New Earth"? 

Rev. 21 gives a vivid description of the "'new heaven 
and new earth." It has been a fruitful subject of 
comment, some holding that the earth, having been 
cursed by sin, will be redeemed, regenerated, purified, 
and transformed by the "second Adam" and made a 
fit dwelling-place for the righteous, where the law of 
love shall prevail and God shall be all in all. The 
"new heaven" is interpreted to mean the firmament 
above us. Thus the "new creation" is interpreted to 
mean the restoration of the physical universe as the 
final abode of glorified, deathless and sinless humanity. 
Others hold that the teaching is clear that the present 
earth is to be literally destroyed, and that the promise 
of a new heaven and a new earth will be fulfilled, as 
he hath said: "Behold I make all things new." 

554. What Is to Be Understood by the Silence 

Mentioned in Rev. 8:1? 

While the whole book of Revelation is of that liter- 
ary character which may be described as mystical, 



555 Difficult Bible Questions 

dealing extensively in types and metaphors, there are 
occasional passages in which the writer descends to 
simpler language for the purpose of more clearly con- 
veying his meaning. The half hour of silence in heaven 
at the breaking of the last seal is not to be reckoned 
by minutes and seconds, but is purely a figure of 
speech. It is meant to convey to the mind a long, 
solemn pause by way of introduction to the joys and 
activities of the eternal Sabbath rest of God'^ people, 
which begins with the reading of the sealed book. The 
preceding chapters have run through the course of 
Divine action, where everything unites in a solemn 
hush for the final act. In the ancient Jewish temple, 
the instrumental music and singing, which formed the 
first part of the service, were hushed immediately be- 
fore the offering of the incense 2 so this pause im- 
mediately precedes the adoration of the blessed spirits 
and the angels and the imminent unfolding of God's 
judgment. See similar figurative expressions in Rev. 
17:12, 18:10, 19. 

555. What Becomes of the Soul in the Interval 
between Death and the Resurrection? 

There are three passages from which an inference 
may be drawn, in the absence of an explicit statement 
in the Bible. The first of these is Christ's assurance 
to the penitent thief (Luke 23 143) : "This day shalt 
thou be with me in Paradise." We are not sure what 
Paradise meant, but it was evidently a place of con- 
scious existence, if it was not heaven itself. A second 
passage is contained in the parable of Dives and Laza- 
rus (Luke 16:19-31). Some allowance must be made 
for the form of picture teaching Christ used, but he 



The Hereafter 555 

certainly described the rich man as being conscious 
and being able to see, hear, speak and feel at a time 
when his brothers were alive upon earth. This in- 
dicated a conscious existence for the soul prior to the 
resurrection. The third passage is Paul's expression 
of a desire for death (Phil. 1:23). He wished "to 
depart and to be with Christ." It is not likely that he 
would have had such a wish if he expected to sleep 
until the resurrection. So active and energetic a man 
would have wished to live and work for Christ rather 
than to lie unconscious in the grave. He clearly ex- 
pected that as soon as he died he would be with Christ. 
These are a few of the statements from which the 
inference is drawn that man goes immediately after 
death to his reward and does not wait for the resur- 
rection. It is not clear that Paul expected a resurrec- 
tion of the body at all. He expected to receive a new 
body (I Cor. 15:37) — not the body that was laid in 
the grave. 



INDEX OF CONTENTS 



No. 

Aaron, His rod 26, 27 

Abba, Meaning of 157 

Abednego 59 

Abraham, Sacrifice of 20 

Abraham Seeing God . 21 

Abraham, Was Sarai his rel- 
ative 43 

Abraham, Visit of three men 

to 21 

Accident, Being killed in, as 

a punishment 332 

Adam, Color of 24 

Adam, Did he eat the forbid- 
den fruit 23 

Adam, Language of 25 

Adversary, Agreeing with. . . 377 

Airship, Prophecy about 161 

Ajalon, Miracle at 22 

Altar, First . . . , 48 

Amelek, His fate 45 

Ammonites 46 

Amorites 47 

Angels — Of the little ones. . . 256 

Angels, Wings of 552 

Apostles' Creed, Origin of., in 

Apostles, Conversion of 139 

Apostles, Why twelve? 119 

Apostles, Deaths of 120 

Apostles, Gift of Tongues, 

Retention of, by 140 

Apostolic Heresies 186 

Ark, Noah' s — Dimensions 

and materials of 90 

Armageddon, Battle of 158 

Associations, Uncongenial... 333 
Atonement — Was it an Old 

Testament belief? 335 

Atonement — Limitations of. . 336 
Automobile, Prophecy about 161 



No. 

Babel — Language of 49 

Captivity at, Cause of 50 

Backslider 349 

Hope for 350 

Balaam, Why God was angry 

with 51 

Balthasar (See Magi). 

Baptized for the Dead 161 

Baptism of Fire 160 

Baptized unto Death 167 

Beast, Mark of..... 162 

Believer, Associating with 

unbelievers 401 

Signs following 293 

Believing, What is 400 

Believer, Wife as, sanctify- 
ing unbelieving husband. 452 
Believers, Witness surround. 202 
Belshazzar, Language of mes- 
sage to S 2 

Bethlehem, Star of 207 

Bible, Chapters alike in 42 

Book of — Authors 1 

Curiosities of II 

Symbols in 12 

Symbolical numbers of 13 

Use of number seven in. . . 14 
Use of number forty in. . . 15 

Inspiration of 2 

Authenticity of, proof 4 

History of, substantiated.. 8 

Omitted books in 17 

Famous songs in 18 

Birth New 3* 1 

New, Is ever unnecessary? 453 

Blessed, Who are the 402 

Blessing, Wealth as 393 

Blood, Shedding of, without 
which no remission 5^9 



386 



Index of Contents 



387 



No. 

Body, Take no thought for . . 298 

Will it rise on resurrection 532 

Bread, Cast thy, on the waters 516 

Cain, Facts about 53 

Mark upon 53 

Wif e's name . . . . , 28 

Called, Many are, but few are 

chosen 3 2 5 

Canaan, Number of Israel en- 
tering . . . 54 

Canaanites, Sin of 55 

Captivity, Babylonian, cause 

of 50 

Caspar (see Magi). 
Celibacy, is it a Bible com- 
mand? 337 

Cheek, Turn to him the other 

cheek 26S 

Child, Little, blessed by Jesus, 

Identity of 287 

Chosen, Few, of many called 325 

Christ, Being in 168 

High priest _ 211 

Influence of, on lives of 

men 449 

Language used by 248 

Not knowing time of end. . 291 
Omniscience of, in the flesh 290 
Parable between, and Adam 504 
Christ, Reference to, in con- 
temporaneous writers... 5 

Risen with 169 

Christian, Can he keep the 

moral law 356 

Conduct of 403 

Joy of 446 

Keeping commandments... 348 

Bible definition of 170 

Christians, First 171 

Christianity, Compelling ac- 
ceptance of 338 

Christmas Day, Date fixed.. 173 

Church, First so-called 172 

Attendance at 405 

Joining of, as means of sal- 
vation 404 



No. 

Church, Wealth of, signs of 

spirituality 406 

Spiritual 339 

Churches, Women, silence in 498 
Cloth, New, on old garments. 330 
Commandments, Must Chris- 
tians keep 348 

Whoever shall break the 

least 254 

Coming, Second Conversion 

whole world before 340 

Confession, Is, a Christian 

duty 407 

Confirmation, Scriptural au- 
thority for 408 

Communion, Examination be- 
fore 398 

Unleavened bread at 409 

Conscience, What is 410 

Approving wrong . . , 411 

Voice of, that of Holy 

Spirit 412 

Consecration, How, is accom- 
plished 413 

Conversion, Is, same as re- 
generation 414 

How is, accomplished 415 

Of whole world before sec- 
ond coming 340 

Creation, Act of 174 

Date of 56 

Time consumed in 57 

Creed, Origin of Apostles'., in 
Crimes, Equal in guilt.*..... 341 
Criticism, Higher, What is?. 3 
Crucify, Son of God 510 

Damnation, Meaning of 528 

Dancing, Biblical prohibition 

of 417 

Daniel, Brothers of 59 

Companions of, in lion's 

den 59 

David, His wives 60 

Justification for execution 

of Joab and Shim 58 

Why man after God's own 
heart 61 



388 



Index of Contents 



No. 

Dead, Baptized for 161 

Let the, bury their dead.. 

258, 327 

Not, but sleepeth 285 

Death, Baptized unto 167 

Repentance after 548 

Second 530 

What does it do to the 

body? m 531 

Does soul exist apart from 

the body after 550 

Sin unto 329 

The Lord's, showing it till 

He comes 522 

Demoniac possession 175 

Destruction — People chosen 

for, by God 344 

Devils, Casting out of 165 

Devil, Creation of 347 

Disciples, Greater works to 

be done by them 315 

Disciples, Marriage of 141 

Disease, Is it sent by God. . . 418 
Dispensation, New — Justifica- 
tion is it same as under 

old 354 

Dispensation, Old — Justifica- 
tion under, is it same as 

under new 354 

Divine likeness, How man 

created in 176 

Divorce, Bible teaching about 361 
Doubt, Ridding oneself of . . . 419 

Earth, New 553 

Population of before and 

after flood 65 

East, Jews face when pray- 
ing 73 

Edomites 62 

Egypt, Date of Joseph's ar- 
rival in 31 

Date of Jacob's arrival in. , 32 

Date of Famine in 30 

Egyptian^ Shepherds are 

abomination to 103 

Elias, This is, which was to 
come 263 



No. 

Elect, Meaning of 177 

Elijah, His body, what be- 
came of it 63 

End—-Christ not knowing 

time of 291 

Endor, Witch of, Did she 
raise spirit of Samuel. . . 109 

Essenes 142 

Eternal Life, Ordained to. . . 505 

Eve, Name 29 

Evil, Emanating from God. . 343 

Faith — Removing mountains 275 
Faith-healing — Is it a lost 

art? 442 

Faith — What is 422, 423 

Falsehood — Is, ever Justifi- 
able 424 

Famine, Great, date of 30 

Fasting, Necessity of 450 

Father, Hating, for Jesus' 

sake 299 

Fear — of God 426 

Feeding, Five thousand, Mir- 
acle of 286 

Fellow-man, Loving our 455 

Fig tree, blighted, miracle of 289 

Fire, Baptism of 160 

Saved as by 178 

Strange, meaning of 179 

Flood, Population of Earth 

before and after 65 

Rain before 64 

Footwashing, Lesson of 319 

Why not kept up ? 422 

Forgiveness, Assurance of . . . 334 

Effect of 425 

Fruit, Forbidden, Did Adam 

eat 23 

Fruit, Forbidden, What is. . . 180 

Generation, What is a 182 

Giants 164 

Giants 164 

Gifts, spiritual 181 

Given, whosoever hath to him 
shall be 296 



Index of Contents 



389 



No. 

Giving, Blessing of 431 

God, Adoption by 435 

Seen of Abraham 21 

Why angry with Balaam ... 51 
Children of, by nature. v . 508 
Children of, interfered with 

by Satan 345 

Choosing people for de- 
struction 344 

Devotedness to 439 

Evil emanating from 343 

Fearing 426 

Good coming from 351 

His heart, David man after 61 

God's Image, Meaning of 184 

God — Joined together by 269 

Judgment of, Misfortune as 367 
Kingdom of, Establishing 

before judgment day 355 

Kingdom of, within you . . . 328 
Kingdom of, What and 

where is ...» 166 

Living close to 434 

Loving 432, 436 

Loving, all things work for 

good 519 

Love of, toward man, in- 
dividuality of 358 

Pardon of 438 

Praising 437 

Praying acceptably to 458 

Reflecting 433 

"So loved the world," au- 
thor of 320 

Sons of (see Giants). 

Son of, crucify, afresh 510 

Will of 440 

Godliness, Profit of 429 

Good, Coming from God... 351 

Why callest thou me 288 

Gospel, Authors of 9 

Dates of writing of 10 

Gospels — Pauline, do they 
contain all things needful 370 

Gulf, Inseparable 304 

Grace, Growth in 430 

Grace, What is 441 



No. 
Heart, New 443 

Heathen, Damnation of 546 

Heaven, Does one go directly 

to, after death 533 

Degrees in 543 

Seeing God in 542 

Happiness in 541 

Infants in 544, 545 

New 553 

Silence in 554 

And earth shall pass away 278 
Hell — Incredibility of doc- 
trine of 547 

Who is able to destroy both 

soul and body in 260 

Herbs, Bitter, Used at Pass- 
over 91 

Hereafter — Were Jews 

taught to look forward to 526 
Of one living nobly but not 

a Christian 529 

Is it to be dreaded? 535 

Recognition in the 537 

What will be like 538 

Shall we work in 539 

What of wives and hus- 
bands in 540 

Heresies in Apostolic times. . 186 
Herodians — Who were they. 146 

Hittites 68 

Hivites 69 

Holy Spirit — Neuter gender 

applied to 352 

Resisting the 444 

As guide 445 

Being baptized with 525 

Husks — That swine did eat. . 301 

Idolatry, Commencement of. 67 
Image of God, Meaning of. . 184 
Immortality — Belief in before 

Christian era 527 

In Christ 168 

Incarnation— Possibility of 

repetition of 363 

Indulgence, What is an 187 

Infants, Saving of 544 



390 



Index of Contents 



No. 
Inspiration — Spiritual, What 

is 2A 

Of speeches of Job's friends 80 

Ishmaelites 70 

Israel, How many of, entered 
Canaan 54 

Jacob, Change in spiritual na- 
ture . 71 

Date of arrival in Egypt. . 32 

James, Early life of 147 

Jerusalem, Temple built in.. j6 

Times destroyed 75 

Walls of 34 

Japhthah — Sacrifice of his 

daughter 72 

Jesus — Meaning of name 247 

Date of birth of 204 

Genealogy of 205 

Brothers of 206 

Increase in wisdom of 209 

Journey to Egypt of 208 

Age when began to under- 
stand his mission 210 

How could, be weary 212 

Baptism of 213 

Making wine 214 

First sermon of 215 

Hymns sung by 216 

Temptation of 217, 219 

Could he sin ? 218 

Transfiguration 221 

Anointment of 222 

Prayer of, at Last Supper. 223 
Prayer of, in Garden of 

Gethsemane 226 

Suffering of, Was it phys- 
ical or mental 228 

Crucifixion of, time 231 

Crucifixion of, duration... 230 
Cross of, Inscription on... 229 
On way to Calvary, was he 

happy? 232 

Death of, Who was guilty 

of, Jews or Romans?... 241 
Death of, Was it of broken 
heart? 233 



No. 
Jesus — Could He have come 
down from the Cross ? . . 236 

Casting lots for clothes of. 242 

Burial — How long in 
grave ? 240 

Resurrection of — In what 
body ? 239 

Resurrection of — W here 
did he get the garments 
he wore at 238 

Resurrection of — -Appear- 
ances after 237 

Resurrection of — Why did 
not want to be touched 
after 243 

Ascension — Was it in hu- 
man form ? 244 

Did he baptize ? 494 

Who art Thou ? 314 

For His sake, hating 
father, mother, etc 299 

As master 277 

Did he abrogate the law?. . 253 

Marks of Lord Jesus 190 

Jews — Face east when pray- 
ing 73 

Kings, succession of 36 

Kings of, twelfth tribe at 
time of 107 

Name of Hebrews, obtain- 
ing of 185 

Origin of name of 35 

Returning to Palestine 353 

Were they taught to look 
forward to a hereafter.. 526 

Joab, Execution of 58 

Job, Book of — Is it history or 
allegory 81 

Who was he ? 77 

Day of his birth blotted 
out. Was it Feb. 29th?. 79 

Speeches of his friends. 
Are they inspired ? 80 

Was he given into hands of 

Satan 78 

John — Birth and early train- 
ing 114 



Index of Contents 



391 



No. 
John—If I will that he tarry 318 
Least in the kingdom great- 
er than 294 

Last chapter, Did he write 112 

John, Baptist — Food of 113 

Date of death 115, 116 

Was he Elijah 117 

Place in prophecy 118 

Jonah, His whale 148 

Joseph, Date of arrival in 

Egypt ; .. 31 

Judah, Kings of, letting their 
sons pass through fire. . . 82 

Judas — Why an apostle? 135 

Was he a devil ? 136 

Death of 137 

Death of, Causes of 138 

Did Christ know was not a 

a true believer ? 292 

Was he at Last Supper ? . . 224 
What value of thirty pieces 
of silver received by. . . . 225 
Judgment Day — Establishing 
kingdom of God before. . 355 

Judging — Wrong of 447 

Justification under new and 
old dispensation 354 

Karaites 149 

Keys, Commission of, to 

Peter 267 

Kingdom of God, What and 

where is 166 

Kingdom — Of God within 

you 328 

Mystery of 284 

Son of man coming in his. 251 
Children of, shall be cast 
out into utter darkness. . 257 

Kings, Jewish 36 

Knowledge — Tree of, Pur- 
pose of 199 

Laborers, Parable of 273 

Land of Nod 53 

Language — Of Adam 25 

Of Babel 49 

Of Belshazzar's message.. 52 



No. 
Law — Did Jesus abrogate it? 253 
Moral — Can Christian 

keep? 356 

Tittle of, not to fail 306 

Law-suit — By Christian 489 

Lazarus — Life of, after his 

resurrection 150 

Rich man and, parable of. . 280 
Liberality — To be com- 
mended 448 

Life — Tree of, Details about 200 

Moral, Can it save? 380 

Take no thought for 298 

Life Insurance, Bible teach- 
ing about 357 

Likeness — Divine — How man 

created in 176 

Lives of men, Christ's in- 
fluence on 449 

Locusts, Food of John the 

Baptist 113 

Lord — The, Giveth and taketh 

away 502 

The, Seek ye Him while 

He may be found 503 

Lord's Prayer — Different ver- 
sions of 249 

Parallel to 250 

Lord's Day — Distinction from 

Sabbath 194 

Lost Tribes 83 

Lot, Children of (see Am- 
monites). 

Wife of, her fate 84 

Love, First, Leaving of 188 

Lucifer — Name of Satan 189 

Lydia 151 

Magi — Who were they? 191 

Manna, What was it ? 37 

Mammon — Of unrighteous- 
ness 307 

Man — Dual nature of 368 

Mark, Cain's 53 

Mark of the Lord Jesus 190 

Marriage, Approved between 
unbeliever and believer. . 362 
Bible teaching about 361 



S92 



Index of Contents 



No. 
Marriage — C h r i s t ian with 

non-Christian 451 

Did Paul discourage ? 360 

Mary — Number of in Bible. . 154 
Was she of tribe of Judah? 152 

Parents of 153 

Master — Jesus so called 277 

Melchior (see Magi). 

Melchiesedec, Christ like 211 

Who was he? 85 

Meekness, as virtue 313 

Meshach 59 

Michael — Dispute with Satan 

over Moses' body 88 

Millennium — What is the. ... 551 
Minister — Son of man came 

to 274 

Ministry — Call to 364 

Qualifications for 365 

Trained, How long have we 

had ? 366 

Miracle at A jalon 22 

Miracles — At present time . . . 359 
Jesus wanted His, kept 

quiet 259 

Of loaves and fishes, What 

kind of baskets used 286 

Of blighted fig tree 289 

Of making wine 308 

At pool of Bethesda 331 

Miraculous conception 203 

Misfortune — Is it judgment 

of God 367 

Mizpah, Meaning of 38 

Moabites 86 

Morrow, Take no thought for 

the 321 

Moses — Body of, Dispute 
over between Michael 

and Satan 88 

Rod 40 

Striking rock 87 

Wife, Name of 39 

Mother — Hating for Jesus' 

sake 299 

Music — In church 499, 500 

Mystery — Of the kingdom. . . 284 



No. 
Name — Jesus — Origin of.... 35 

Nature — Dual in man 368 

Nebuchadnezzar — Did he eat 

grass? 89 

Needle, Eye of 270 

Negro, First 33 

Saving of 369 

Neighbor, Who is my 454 

Nephilim (see Giants). 

Nestorians 155 

Nicolaitanes 156 

Noah — Ark — Materials and 

dimensions of 90 

Nod, Land of 53 

Old Testament — Compilation 

of 16 

Ordained to eternal life 505 

Overcoming — Like Jesus 456 

Palestine — Jews returning to 353 
Parables — Of Jesus, allusion 
to historical characters in 281 
Unto them that are with- 
out are these things done 

in 283 

Parables — Of the laborers. . . 272 
Of return of unclean spirit 27^ 
Of man without wedding 

garment 265, 324 

Of the talents 276 

Of rich man and Lazarus 

279, 280, 305 

What was their value 297 

Of prodigal son 301, 302 

Of ten virgins 323 

Paradise — What was the, 

promised the dying thief? 549 
Passover — Bitter herbs at... 91 

Patriarchs, Age of 92 

Paul — Dispute with Peter 125 

Marriage of 128 

Baptizing by 131 

Thorn in the flesh of 134 

Missionary journeys of 129 

Journey to Rome 130 



Index of Contents 



393 



No. 
Paul— -Personal appearance 

of <... 124 

His parents 122 

Dates of his epistles 123 

Part in stoning of Stephen 127 
Belief in resurrection of, as 
a deterrent to living a 

self-indulgent life 121 

Familiarity with scriptures 

of 126 

Advice to Timothy to 

drink wine 342 

Pauline Gospels (see 

Gospels). 
Peter, Communion of keys to 267 

Dispute with Paul 125 

Peace — I came not to send, 

but the sword 261 

Persons — God no respecter of 501 
Peter — Dispute with Paul... 125 

Journey to Rome 132 

Conversion of 133 

Loving Christ more than 

the apostles 317 

When converted, strength- 
en thy brethren 303 

Pharaoh — Fate of 93 

Hardened — C o u 1 d he do 

otherwise than he did. . . 95 

Hardening of heart of . . . . 94 

Pharisees — Who were they?. 144 

Philistines 96 

Pilate — What became of?... 234 
Could he have done other- 
wise? 235 

Pleasures — Christian's atti- 
tude towards 457 

Polygamy — Permitted to an- 
cients only 371 

Population of earth before 

and after flood 65 

Pork — Prohibition against 

eating, is obsolete 381 

Potiphar — Wife of 41 

Prayers — Answer of 372 

Prayers — F o r unconverted, 
Helpfulness of 273 



No. 
Prayers — For one from 
whom Holy Spirit has 

departed? 374 

Persistently asking for 

blessings in 375 

Asking for definite bless- 
ings . . . 376 

God granting everything we 

ask in 379 

To God, How made ac- 
ceptable 458 

God, hearing those of 

wicked 380 

Prayer, Jews face east during 73 
Public, Does it violate the 
injunction to enter into 

the closet? 316 

Prince of the power of the 

air 160 

Prison — Spirits in, Who are 

they? 197 

Prophets — False, in sheep 

clothing 322 

Proverbs — Author of Book of 97 

Psalms — Composer of 97 A 

Punishment — Trouble as 386 

To be killed in accident as . 332 

Rachel — Weeping for her 
children 98 

Rain — Before flood 64 

Rainbow — Visible before 
flood 66 

Readers (see Karaites). 
Redemption — What does for 

_ us? 459 

Red Sea— Width of, at 

Israel's crossing 99 

Regeneration — What is 460 

Difference between, and 
baptism of Holy Spirit.. 461 

Remorse — As discipline 462 

Repentance — Ninety and nine 

who need no 300 

After death 548 

Restitution — Where is, taught 463 
Resurrection — Why a, fol- 
lowed by judgment day. 534 



394 



Index of Contents 



No. 
Retaliation — May Christians 

practice 464 

Revelation — Author of Book 

of 19 

Of the man of sin 192 

Reward — S h o u 1 d Christian 

work for 465 

Rich man — Doubt as to his 

entering kingdom 271 

Rich man and Lazarus — Par- 
able of 280 

Righteous — Never forsaken. 512 

Over — Impossible to be 513 

Rod — Of Aaron 26, 27 

Of Moses 40 

Sabbath — Changing of to first 

day of week 382 

Changed from seventh to 

first day of week 193 

Distinction between Sunday 

and Lord's Day 194 

Observance — Duty as to . . . 457 
Observance — Theory as to. 468 

Sacrifice — Of Abraham 20 

Of Jephthah 72 

Sadducees — Who were they? 145 
Saint — First application o f 

term 514 

Saints — Meaning of sleeping. 196 

Salvation — Being sure of 466 

By an honest life 380 

Getting beyond God's will- 
ingness for 469 

Way of 470 

Working out own 471 

Acceptance of 472 

Of all people — Why not ac- 
complished ? 387 

Possibility of having with- 
out knowing it 389 

Working out our own 471 

Samuel — Did Witch of Endor 

raise spirit of 109 

Sarai — Was she related to 
Abram? 43 



No. 
Satan — Delivery of offender 

*° 521 

Dispute with Michael over 

Moses* body 88 

In referring with God's 

children 345 

Name of Lucifer 189 

Was Job given in his hands 78 

Saul — Sin of 102 

Saved yet as by fire 178 

Scriptures — Why believe the. 7 
Secret place — Meaning of... 195 

Selah, Meaning of 44 

Serpent — Brazen 163 

Sentence of 346 

Shadrach 59 

Sheba — Queen of — Whence 

came she . . . . s 100 

Queen of — What problems 
did she give Solomon ... 101 
Shepherds — An abomination 

to Egyptians 103 

False distinguished from 

a true 473 

Shimei, Execution of 58 

Sickness — As p u n i s h ment 

from Satan 474 

Sidonians 104 

Signs — Following believers.. 293 

Silence in heaven 554 

Sin — Children punished for 

parents' 481 

Every willful 483 

Sin — All, pardonable 484 

Unpardonable 485 

Doing what one considers 
wrong though it is inno- 
cent 486 

Falling into, as evidence of 

non-conversion 475 

Assurance of forgiveness 

°i ••; 334 

Harassing of past 476 

Punishment for, on earth. . 477 



Index of Contents 



395 



No. 
Sin — Willful as cause for ex- 
clusion from pardon. . . . 478 
Besetting, getting over. . . . 479 

Is it natural 481 

Sin— Man of, revelation of . . 192 

Unto death 329 

Sinless — Regenerate as 480 

Possibility of 482 

Sleeping saints — Meaning of 196 
Sodom — Secular history of. . 105 
Solomon's song — Spiritual 

sermon in 106 

Son of Man — Coming in His 

kingdom 251 

Soul — In death, Does it exist 

outside the body ? 550 

What becomes of, in inter- 
val between death and 

resurrection? 555 

Souls — More lost or more 

saved 536 

Winning 488 

Spirit — Born of, and of water 310 
Unclean, return of, what is 
meant by Christ's parable 

of? 265 

Witness of the 312 

Spirits — U n c 1 e a n, entering 

herd of swine 297 

In prison, Who are they?. . 197 

Spiritual — Meaning of 198 

Gifts— What are ? 181 

Suicide — Is it a wrong? 383 

Sunday — Distinction from 

Sabbath 194 

Supper, Last — Prayer used 

at 223 

Swine — Herd of — Unclean 

spirits entering 297 

Swords — Injunction by Christ 
to buy 326 

Talents — Parable of the 279 

Tares — The, What are they? 266 
Temple — Why built in Jeru- 
salem ? 76 



No. 
Temptation — Is it of God?.. 490 

Is it sin ? 491 

Lead us not into 255 

Tempted, Being, Is it sin?. . . 384 
Tendencies — Evil, Ridding 

oneself of 421 

Testament, Old — Atonement 

in 335 

Thoughts — Impure, are sign 

of non-conversion? 416 

Evil, does converted person 

have 420 

Timothy — Advice by Paul to, 

to drink wine 342 

Tithes — What are ? 492 

Tongues — Gift of 183 

Gift of — Retention of apos- 
tles 140 

Transfiguration — Meaning of 390 
Transubstantiation — Meaning 

of 391 

Tree of Life, Meaning of . . . . 200 

Tribes, Lost 83 

Twelfth at time of Jewish 

kings 107 

Trinity, The . . .^ 385 

Trouble, As punishment 386 

Truth, Buy the, and sell it 

not 507 

Unequally yoked, Meaning of 201 
Unrighteousness — M a mm on 

of, making friends with. 307 
Usury — Bible teaching as to. 496 
Uzzah — His sin 108 

Vessel — One to honor, an- 
other to dishonor 520 

Virgins — Parable of ten 323 

Visions — Where no, there 

people perish 5 X 8 

Of Zechariah, Meaning of. no 

Walls around Jerusalem 34 

War, Christian justification 
for 497 



396 



Index of Contents 



Water, Born of, and of spirit 310 
Wealth — A blessing or evil. . 393 
Business man having, can 
he be practical Christian ? 392 
Wedding garment, Man with- 
out 276 

Weight, Laying aside every. .511 
Wife, Believing, sanctifying 

unbelieving husband 452 

Hating for Jesus' sake 299 

Wine— Making of, at Canaan 308 

Did Christ make? 214 

New, in old bottles 282 

Paul's advice to Timothy to 

drink 342 

Wise men (see Magi). 



Witch of Endor — Did she 
raise spirit of Samuel . . . 109 

Witnesses — B e 1 i e v ers sur- 
rounded by 202 

Words — Idle, that men shall 
give account of 264 

Works, Greater, that disciples 
would do 315 

Wrongdoer — F orgiving, if 
not asked , 428 

Yoked, Unequally— What is? 201 

Zeal — Of thine house has 
eaten me up 309 

Zechariah — V i s i o n s o f — 
Meaning of no 



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